That is interesting- I did not know it was only four that roared.
And yep, the cheetah is quite different, as you mention, non- retractable claws but also air- filled bones (like birds rather than mammals) and extremely long tails that they use for 'rudders' to change direction quickly. Also supposed to be one of, or the outright best, of the large cats to have as a pet; the other supposedly 'good' pet big cat being a panther or jaguar (same family).
Also very interesting about the eyes, I did not know that either. But the part about ambush hunters, is that more of a rule of thumb than a rule? The reason I ask is because the only cooperative huning cats that I am aware of are lionesses. Tigers are solitary animals at all times other than mating (there is a joke in there but good taste prevents me from posting it) and I believe they too are ambush hunters, yet tigers are bigger than lions.
A very rare but I find interesting variant of 'cats' is the crossing of a tiger and lion, creating a hybrid that is either a Tigon or Liger, depending on which was mom and which was dad. Genetically mutants, they are a fascinating animal and the Liger (but not the Tigon) grows larger than either parent species, on average, making it the largest member of the cat family. Kind of an odd looking animal, sort of a faded tiger print over lion coloring but then again, they probably do not have many people pointing and laughing at them what with the teeth, claws and 500, 600+ pounds of driving muscle behind them.
I happened to catch a TV show about the American cougar and something that surprised me about them was that they have the greatest bite strength of all cats, per their weight, and the typical cougar method of killing is to crush the prey's skulls outright, while other large cats pinch off the windpipe from the throat and suffocate their prey.
I am just now getting re- acquainted with cats, living with my little gray lioness. :-) As always, they are most impressive (all members of this family) with their speed, precision and agility, especially so after 40 years of having only dogs. As an aside, this kitten is the first domestic cat I have ever 'met', and I have known a lot of cats, who will bat while playing without extending her claws. If you did not know better, you would think she was de-clawed because there is not even a hint of any claw when she plays. They most certainly show up when she climbs her cat- scratching post and hanging belt though.
The original plan was to have her de- clawed but our vet. gave us some really useful advice on how to stop misbehavior that seems to be working very well so far; I would rather not de- claw her because it really is a form of maiming, about the equivalent of taking a humans' fingers off at the first joint.
Cheetahs: excellent communicators! :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8atqdyfaQY I know exactly what he was saying.
Brian
Yep, and that separation is called the "lesser cats" vs "greater cats", the greater ones being that of the Panthera genus (4 species) and all others are the lesser (of which there are many).
There is only one species of domestic cat, felis silvestris catus. Cats are far more genetically resistant to changes in body shape and size than dogs and many other animals. Breeders have tried to change that by creating hybrids with other non-domestic species, but it has been difficult. The most successful so far is the Savanna Cat (a cross with a serval). TICA now recognizes it as an actual breed, although CFA does not [yet].
Many consider the cheetah to be the most outlier of the cats, because they are the only ones that have non-retractable claws and run considerably faster than all others (it is the fastest land animal on earth).
Another interesting variation is that smaller cats are ambush hunters and have vertical slit pupils. Larger cats are typically chase or group hunters and have round pupils.