Night Cats Transcript, continued
malanai: Aardvarks seem like easy targets for large predators. How do they survive among them?
Peter Gros: They do seem like easy targets. They're large, not very fast and resemble the pig. The name "aardvark" means "earth pig" and is the name of a burrowing, ant-eating mammal found in a lot of Africa. It provides homes for many species of animals, which share their network of underground tunnels. The aardvark uses its specialized, chisel-shaped claws to break open hard clay for termite nests. These same claws can be used defensively to strike threatening animals. But generally, they'll only fight when they cannot flee to a burrow for safety.
christopherz: When you see a night cat face to face, is it scary or exciting? And have you gotten so close that the cats tried to attack you?
Peter Gros: It's very exciting! It is an amazing thing to see a cat staring at you at night, because generally they've been watching you for a very long time before you get to see them. I have never had a large cat try to attack me, because in most cases, large predators don't consider humans a source of food. There have been some highly publicized cases of man-eaters in East Africa; for example, when the rail link between Lake Victoria and Mombasa was being built over the river Tsavo, a pair of lions became infamous for attacking workers at that time. But in most cases, there are greatly exaggerated stories of man-eaters, which we tend to hear about often.
breebree: Why can some cats roar and some can't?
Peter Gros: That's a great question. Some of the large cats can roar because of a bone called the hyoid bone in the throat, which creates a vibration. Some can be heard up to four miles. Others are able to just purr, and if you put your two fingers on your throat and hum, you'll be able to feel the same sort of vibration a cat makes when it's purring. Some of the cats that can purr are the North American mountain lion, the serval and the cheetah. The larger cats cannot purr.
lazychicken: How do night cats see in the dark? Do they have different eye structures than other cats?
Peter Gros: They do. Cats' eyes show an adaptation for nocturnal vision. In the first place, they're relatively large, which permits the pupil to be correspondingly large. This, in turn, enables more of the available light to enter the eye. Also, the cornea is more sharply curved, so the lens creates a larger chamber for light. The retina is positioned closer to the lens, and as a result has a greater sensitivity to rays of light. Cats can effectively see in starlight, or the slightest moonlight. If you shine a flashlight toward a cat and the eyes are glowing, what you see is the light being reflected from the back of the retina of each eye.
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