There’s no denying that cats are cunning predators. But how do they remember where they’ve buried their prey?
Scientists have long been puzzled by this question, and a new study has offered some insights.
The study, published in the journal Animal Cognition, found that domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus) use a combination of visual and auditory cues to remember the location of their buried prey.
Researchers placed food in two identical boxes and watched as the cats buried it in one of the boxes. Later, when the boxes were switched, the cats dug up their prey more often from the box that contained the food they had bury themselves.
This suggests that cats use a combination of visual and auditory cues to remember the location of their prey. The study’s authors say this is the first evidence that cats use these cues together to remember the location of their food.
The findings could have implications for our understanding of how other animals, including humans, remember the locations of things.
“Our findings suggest that the use of multiple cues to remember the location of hidden objects is not unique to humans,” said study author Sébastien Devillard, a cognitive biologist at the University of Geneva.
“This ability might be widespread among animals that have to remember the location of food or other objects.”
So the next time you see your cat digging through the trash, you can rest assured that they know exactly what they’re doing.
Who knew that these furry little creatures were so cunning?
