人間との関わりの中で変化し続けるイエネコの社会的行動

抄録

Recent molecular analysis and archaeological evidence has led to the conclusion that an ancestor of the domestic cat (Felis silvestris catus) is the African wildcat (Felis silvestris lybica). The relationship of humans with wildcats, followed by their domestication, may have begun approximately 10,000 years ago in Mesopotamia. The cat was thereafter introduced to ancient Egypt where the process of domestication is assumed to have been completed. The cat acquired the characteristic of having no fear of humans so that the two species have long been capable of cohabitation. Another characteristic that the cat acquired in ancient times was a tolerance to living with a large number of other cats. This characteristic has affected the social system and social behaviors of feral cats. They tend to form a feeding group under situations in which food resources are sufficiently clumped so that many cats can feed. Some social behaviors observed among feral group-living African lions but not among solitary-living wildcats are homosexual behavior by the male cats, communal nursing by the female cats, and male parental care to prevent infanticide. Most of these behaviors are likely to evolve in association with high-density living. In the future, the behaviors of the domestic cat will continue to change under consecutive influences by human society.