What is a Calico Cat?
Contrary to popular belief, a calico cat is not a specific breed of cat. It is instead an unusual pattern of coloring that can occur in many different breeds, including Manx, Persian, and Domestic Short-Hair cats. To be considered a calico cat, a cat must be tri-colored, with patches of white, red or orange, and black fur. Some breeds have rules as to what percentage of the cat's fur must be white for it to be called a calico cat.
Calico cats are nearly always female. This is due to the genes for the orange or black color being on the X chromosome. Female cats have two X chromosomes, while male cats have an X and a Y chromosome. Therefore, the mother cat passes the X chromosome on to her kittens, while the father passes either the X or Y chromosome, thus determining the kittens’ sex. To be a calico cat, the kitten must have an X chromosome that has the orange color and an X chromosome that has the black color. Male calico cats are genetic anomalies, with XXY chromosomes and are sterile and extremely rare.
A calico cat has sections of different colors in its fur. Usually the calicos with more white fur also have larger and more distinct patches of color. If the orange and black fur is mixed, the cat is called a tortoiseshell. Tortoiseshell cats, or "torties," as they are commonly known, have little or no white fur.
A variation on the usual calico color pattern is the "dilute" or "pastel" calico cat. This type of calico cat gets its name from the fact that its color pattern is a "diluted" or "pastel" version of the typical colors. A dilute or pastel calico cat has a pattern of buff or cream instead of orange and "blue", a slate gray color, instead of black.
Throughout history, many cultures have considered the calico cat to be lucky. At one point in Japan, a calico cat was thought to bring good luck in the house and to protect sailors on their ships. The calico cat was adopted as the Maryland state cat on 1 October 2001 because its colors of black, white, and orange are the same as the Baltimore Oriole and the Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly; the state bird and insect, respectively.
Written by Bronwyn Harris
