Caturday felids: Wolf cats, cat train, and the nonperforming Acro Cats

From NextShark we see a new breed of “wolf cat” called the “Lykoi cat,” (“lykoi” is from the Greek for “wolf”), which, according to Wikipedia, was developed in Tennessee.

The Lykoi is a partially or almost entirely hairless cat that is genetically distinct from the Canadian Sphynx. The hair coat is unique in appearance in that it resembles the coat of an opossum when mostly coated. Standards call for a solid black roan coat, a wedge-shaped head, and a lithe body of solid weight without excessive bulk. Lykoi are said to be friendly and unchallenging in their behavior. They display a high level of affection for their owners.

Althought NextShark calls them “terrifying,” I don’t find them scary at all:

This is clearly based on a genetic mutation or mutations, since it’s inherited stably across generations, but what is the mutation and how does it affect the coat? We apparently don’t yet know, at least according to Wikipedia;

At the University of Tennessee, dermatologists examined them for any skin abnormalities. Along with biopsy samples of the skin, the dermatologists could find no reason for the coat pattern. What they did find is that some hair follicles lacked all the necessary components required to create hair (which is why Lykoi lack an undercoat). They also found that the follicles that were able to produce hair, lacked the proper balance of these components to maintain the hair (which is why Lykoi do molt and can become almost completely bald from time to time). It was determined, with test breeding to be true natural mutation.

They do resemble possums, don’t they?

An adult:

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The Japanese love their cats, and one of the country’s most beloved moggies is Stationmaster Tama, a calico who has the official title of Super Station Master because, as I reported in 2011 (see also Guardian article here), she hangs around the train station of Kishi in western Japan, where she’s attracted a huge following. As the Guardian reported, the train line made the canny decision of promoting the train using Tama (putting a hat on her didn’t hurt, either):

The former stray is attracting cat lovers from all over the country, as well as creating a much-needed injection of cash for the heavily-indebted line. The nine-mile-long line was losing 500m yen a year and at one point only 5,000 passengers a day were using it. When the station’s last human employee packed his bags as part of a cost-cutting drive in 2006, Tama stayed on. Her loyalty paid off: since her appointment as stationmaster last year she has seen passenger numbers rise 10% to 2.1 million a year.

Here she is:

And, as Mental Floss reports, there’s now a special Tama Train:

Wakayama Dentetsu, the city where the station is located, loves the furry professional, and even decorated a train in her honour. Called the Tama Train, it was specially painted with cartoons of her likeness. The themed train has recently gotten an upgrade and now features giant cat ears, whiskers, and a stationmaster hat. The inside is air-conditioned and has some pretty funky furniture: The chairs are shaped like cats and the couches have fun feline patterns. There is even an elaborate cage for when the stationmaster wishes to ride the train (when she’s not there, a cardboard drawing of her fills her space).

The train, which is fricking adorable:

The stationmaster’s personal cage on the train, with her cardboard surrogate:

Kawaii!

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Finally, the Acro Cats, a troupe of “performing” cats, performed—or rather, failed to perform—on Stephen Colbert’s new late night show. This shows what happens why you try to train cats. I don’t think a single one did its trick properly! The audience goes wild when a cat does even part of a trick.

Apparently the Acro Cat troupe tours the U.S. promoting cat adoption, so you might want to head to their Kickstarter page to see if you want to support them. They apparently need a new tour bus (shades of the Tami train!):

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As lagniappe, I got a nice note from Luis Peña, creator of the Lego Beagle Project, thanking me for helping him reach the 10,000-supporter mark. Although I really didn’t do much, I was gratified to see a new “render” that he’d made especially for me:

Darwin and a cat—you can’t beat that!

 

h/t: Steven Q. Muth, Gravelinspector, Julian, Chris Bonds