A rare new colour of cat known as 'salty liquorice' has been discovered by researchers in Finland. Cats with the unusual coat - known as 'salmiak cats' (which translates as 'salty liquorice')- are black with flecks of white. Elsewhere on their bodies, salmiak cats wear a 'tuxedo' pattern: a solid white neck, chest, belly and paws.
The unusual pattern of the new coat is. Pictures from the study show the salmiak coloring in cats. Scientists found the genetic mutation responsible for this unusual coat.
Animal Genetics (2024 Researchers initiated DNA tests to. A newly discovered cat coat color named "salty licorice," originating from Finland, has been identified among feral cat populations since 2007. This distinct coloration results from a genetic mutation linked to a recessive trait.
Ongoing research by Dr. Heidi Anderson's team is exploring its inheritance and potential implications for hearing. A genetic mutation has been creating some striking cats with designer coats in a dazzling shade called "salty licorice": tuxedo cats with fur that is black at the base, and frosted white at the tip.
But you most likely haven't seen a salty licorice cat in person, because these exquisite felines have only been observed in central Finland. The salty licorice name sounds peculiar to this. This cat's coat is colored near the skin and gets progressively whiter towards the tip, often being less prominent near the head.
They can have different base colors such as black, brown tabby, tortoiseshell or blue but the salty licorice cat pattern is easiest to spot on cats with a black base color. The cats' name comes from a candy in Finland, where the distinct coloring was first spotted. A novel gene mutation gives rise to the fur pattern, researchers found.
Scientists have discovered a rare new cat coat color called salmiak, or salty liquorice, caused by a genetic mutation. This stunning shade is now explained. The genetic basis for a distinctive new coat coloring - known as "salmiak".
A new kind of kitty just dropped! Well, not exactly "just" - the unusual coat dubbed "salty licorice appeared as early as 2007 in Finland. And now, almost two decades later, a team of researchers from the University of Helsinki in Finland has discovered the true source of this unique color: a rare genetic mutation. Fans of the pattern described it as similar to a tuxedo for cats, but.
These new types of cats lack parts of the appropriately named KIT gene that controls certain aspects of cat coloration. That also makes the salmiak coloration very rare, as both parents must have the mutation for a kitten to develop the distinctive colors. Bizarre mutants have never been this adorable.
Photos of salmiak cats courtesy of Anderson et al. What's the Color? On a quick glance.