Male Calico
Female Calico
Initially found in Egypt, Calico cats have been known to have originated from the Mediterranean to port cities in Italy, Spain, and France. However, they can be found across the world in current times. These tri-coloured cats are known for their beautiful coat which comprises a unique combination of orange, brown/black and white.
These sweet-whiskered cats, which are almost always females can have their tri-coloured coat even spotted in breeds such as American Shorthair, Japanese Bobtail, and Persian cats. At times these cats can also be found with diluted colouration such as blue tortoiseshell and white; terming the cat as calimanco or clouded tiger.
You can at times also find this tri-colour calico colouration along with a tabby pattern, which is also known as tortoiseshell tabby with white. These calico-patched tabby cats may be referred to as caliby or torbico.
However, these cats are solely known for their colour pattern of the fur and are not a breed. Some of the other breeds of cats that can be found having this tri-colouration include the British Shorthair, Main Coon, American Shorthair, Manx cats, Turkish Vans, Exotic Shorthair, Japanese Bobtail, Arabic Mau, Norwegian Forest cat and Turkish Angora.
The genetic determination of the coats is linked to the X chromosome while one colour is linked to the maternal X chromosome and a second colour is linked to the paternal X chromosome. males are only one colour (for instance, black) as they have only one X chromosome. Male calicoes occur only when a male cat has two X chromosomes also known as Klinefelter syndrome. There are also dilute calicos which are distinguished for their lighter colours such as grey (known as blue), cream, and gold colours instead of the typical colours along with white.
These cats by far are my favourite types of cats and I have a cute calico known as Mini!
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