Thread: New Zealands big Cats

Originally Posted by phillipgr

I once read an article about the Canterbury Panther or Big Cat or whatever it was called, but you know what I'm talking about. The writer said that when domesticated cats became feral, within a few generations, they usually became black in colour. This is by natural selection because the black cats made better hunters, due to being hidden in the dark. The writer also said that they tended to become larger too, for the same reasons. Perhaps part of the reason whenever someone sees the "Canterbury Panther" and thinks its huge is because it is some black feral cat and that colour, like you said, makes it seem larger. Along with the fact that they are probably a bit bigger than a domesticated cat would be (but still no where near the size of a Panther".

Thanks for that , makes sence