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The Age of Cats review: How our furry friends evolved, and what’s next

Domestic cats are a paradox, argues biologist Jonathan B. Losos in a book that delves into their origins and the emerging science of feline behaviour

By Michael Marshall

3 May 2023

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Domestic cats may have a less intense fear response than wildcats

Steve Satushek/The Image Bank/Getty Images

The Age of Cats
Jonathan B. Losos (Harper Collins UK, out 11 May)

ON THE face of it, as Jonathan B. Losos admits early in his new book, it isn’t obvious why he would write about cats.

Losos, a biologist at Washington University in St Louis, Missouri, has spent most of his career studying the evolution of lizards. His research has explored the mechanisms driving this and, by extension, how evolution works in general.

This culminated in his 2017…

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