What determines whether the young of a cat is called a kitten or a cub?
The young of cats are called kittens or cubs, depending partly on how large the cat is, and apparently partly on informal custom. Wikipedia, kitten says:
The word "kitten" derives from the Middle English word kitoun, which in turn came from the Old French chitoun or cheton. Juvenile big cats are called "cubs" rather than kittens; either term may be used for the young of smaller wild felids, such as ocelots, caracals and lynx, but "kitten" is usually more common for these species.
So far, clear. But take a look at the name for the young of cougars.
The young of mountain lions are often called kittens. This seems an odd choice for the young of such a large cat. Wikipedia says:
Cougars are the largest of the small cats. They are placed in the subfamily Felinae, although their bulk characteristics are similar to those of the big cats in the subfamily Pantherinae.
Cougar: The American Lion, a publication of the Mountain Lion Foundation says:
Newborn mountain lions enter the world as buff brown balls of fur weighing slightly more than a pound. Biologists call them kittens or cubs either is correct.
This article then proceeds to call them kittens throughout.
Sciencing calls them cubs.
Is there a scientific basis for choosing kittens over cubs, or vice versa, for the young of cats? The extremes are clear: a baby tiger is a cub; a baby domestic cat is a kitten. But in the middle -- is there a scientific rule or just personal preference?
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1 answer
It depends on whether the cat is a member of the Panthera (cubs) or Felinae (kittens). This
Panthera is the big cats,
The British taxonomist Pocock revised the classification of this genus in 1916 as comprising the species lion, tiger, jaguar, and leopard on the basis of cranial features. Results of genetic analysis indicate that the snow leopard also belongs to the Panthera, a classification that was accepted by IUCN assessors in 2008.4
and Felinae is basically everything else. A not quite complete description is that Panthera cats roar while Felinae cats purr, but that not entirely accurate as the snow leopard is unable to roar.
In big cats- - lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars- - a length of tough cartilage runs up the hyoid bones to the skull. This feature prevents purring but also gives the larynx enough flexibility to produce a full- throated roar- - 114 decibels' worth in the case of one lion tested. The sound can be loud enough to be near a human's pain threshold. Purring ability, rather than size or behavior, is one of two chief distinctions between the two main genera of cat, Felis and Panthera. (The other difference is that the eyes of the former have pupils that narrow to vertical slits.) These genera are sometimes called "the purring cats" and "the roaring cats," respectively, although among the latter only the lion roars habitually.
According to Wikipedia, cubs refers to the offspring of the big cats, while either can be used for the offspring of the purring cats, but kittens are more commonly used.
As for why it is not consistent, I would just like to point out how people use both Canada and Canadian Geese.
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