While cats are known for their physical hunting skills, he believes that the vocal exploitation of prey organisms demonstrates a level of cunning that warrants further investigation. Or, for that matter, a bird! The monkeys in Rohes' study were almost duped, according to him.īoth cats, according to Rohe, might be able to imitate their prey's vocalizations. “I'm not bothering you! “I'm just another monkey!” exclaims the narrator. What is the key hypothesis? By imitating familiar sounds, cats might be lulling their prey into believing they aren't a threat. The wildcat began imitating the monkeys' vocalizations and began making calls that were similar to theirs this was the first time a wildcat in the Americas did so. When a wildcat prowled onto the scene, Rohe and his colleagues were capturing monkey vocalizations. Some behaviorists believe that a cat's chattering jaws are simulating the "death bite," and that cats are simply preparing for the final moment.īut it raises the question: why would an ambush predator relying on stealth make a noise that could jeopardize their hunt? We may be one step closer to understanding why cats chatter at birds thanks to a group of pied tamarin monkeys and a hungry wildcat.įabio Rohe of the Wildlife Conservation Society was observing a group of these pied tamarin monkeys in their natural habitat in Brazil's Amazon forests. Others believe the unusual pattern of chirps and clacks is a reaction to the feline's adrenaline rush as it spots its prey. Many behaviorists believe that a cat's chattering at a bird is a way for them to vent their feelings about not being able to capture food that is out of reach. Trying to figure out why cats do what they do is a lot of guesswork, as it is with most things feline. (Tip: Do you have a sluggish cat that enjoys chirping at birds? To activate those instincts, encourage and entice them to exercise with a flying teaser or wand toy that imitates the movement of birds!) Chattering at birds is just one of those instinctive habits that your cat has. And, as it turns out, the idea might not be so far-fetched.Įven the most indoor of domesticated cats retain innate hunting instincts, which are also the driving force behind a wide range of cat behaviors, both positive and negative. Really.Have you ever wondered why your cat makes odd, chattering noises when it sees birds or small animals? Or, as others on the Internet claim, "ekekekeke"! These unusual cat chatterings almost seem like they're trying to communicate with the birds, whether it's pent-up irritation or enthusiasm. For cats that are indoor cats, I'd keep them as indoor cats to save the birds. We needed this because the cat was a stray who adopted us, and went stir-crazy if kept inside for long. Sometimes, we didn't see him, but we could hear people walking by (on the other side of the hedge as we worked in the garden) say "Ah, look at the cute cat wearing that collar." He got so used to it, he didn't mind, and it also made him more visible to cars and people wandering by. We LOVED this product, and used it with the stretchy breakaway collar for ease of getting it on an off. One further tip: when the young birds are fledging, we'd keep him inside during the day for a few days because the little ones can't fly away even if they see the cat. We would then find them - sometimes months later - in a bush or in the wood shed, etc. We always had a bunch on the go as he would get them dirty or snag them on something and lose them. Some people complained they got dirty and the cat's fir got matted under them - we only put them on him as he was exiting the house, and took them off and ung them on a peg when he came in. Our cat passed away a few months ago, but he wore these collars for years.
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