If you watch any cat closely, you’ll probably notice that they really do have very wide facial expressions. This is especially interesting for animals that are considered to be highly asocial, constantly emphasizing their own independence.
All the more surprising are, for example, the results of this study by the UCLA researchers, the authors of which counted as many as 276 different facial expressions in cats. Moreover, what's intriguing is that these expressions are used when cats communicate with each other, and not only with people.
No, of course, there was a human element involved as well. Scientists believe that the active development of cats' facial abilities occurred precisely in the last few thousand years - right after they were domesticated. Well, 276 facial expressions are, of course, not the 357 variations that chimpanzees are capable of—but it's still a very, very respectable figure.
A significant portion of the photographs presented in our selection are the so-called Flehmen response, a characteristic movement of the lips in many mammals associated with the capture of various volatile aromatic substances, in particular pheromones, into the area of the perceiving organ.
This organ is located just above the palate, so the animal bends its upper lip, thereby exposing the front teeth and gums, then takes a breath and freezes for a few seconds. In this way, animals receive additional information about various smells that interest them. And we, in turn, receive a charge of positive emotions - after all, cats look very funny with this expression.
On the other hand, who knows - maybe we still know so little about our fluffy friends that the expressions on their faces, which we consider exclusively "silly," actually indicate some kind of ingenious thought process? For example, who can guarantee that your cat, sitting in a strange pose with a stupid expression frozen on their face, is not thinking about some kind of insidious plan right in that moment?
In any case, true or not, we are damn grateful to cats for walking with us all these years, giving us a lot of pleasant emotions (and if the emotions are not so pleasant, then it’s not the cat’s problem, right?). So now, please feel free to view this selection of silly cat memes to the very end, and maybe share your own cats’ pictures, too, if you’ve been blessed from above to be a happy cat-owner yourself.
