Animals and their fur
Some species have the most luxuriant fur and anyone who has pets know how soft and comforting feeling their fur can be even though these have been domesticated by mankind for thousands of years and some genes were selected for coat type and texture so naturally, in some cases, we would choose animals with coats we enjoy the most, breed them and keep breeding the offspring until we have pets with the fur we like best.
This is for some breeds of domestic animals. Others that have fur which primary purpose is not to feel and pet have coats that aren't as soft. We have selected what suits our needs and the result is all kinds of coat types for our pets.
So, then we have wild animals that have little to do with humans except, in some cases, provide meat, and in days of yore, provided clothing and protection from the elements, and many of them, such as rabbits, beavers, minks, bobcats, many cat breeds in general, foxes, to name a few, have coats that people really love to touch.
My question is, how is it these animals, that aren't really that social with each other and even when they are, they do not necessarily spend a lot of time touching each other's fur and admiring how it feels, manage to have genes that produce such lovely fur that our species, which doesn't even have much fur of its own, only sparse body hair and mediocre amounts of hair on our heads, finds so attractive and appealing.
*Scratches head* it doesn't make sense at all.
I can think of a few reasons for fur:
- Helps manage temperature. Humans took a different road: we are sweaters.
- May help in camouflage
- Helps in communication, many mammals can make themselves look bigger with fur. When cats are scared or angry, their hairs stand up
- Maybe sexual attraction? Male lions have manes, maybe lionesses think that looks good, or maybe they help defending their necks when fighting other male lions?
A sunset is aesthetically pleasing.
But that doesn't mean that the sun 'evolved' to be pleasing.
The fact that some animals have luxuriant fur is an effect, not a cause.
The most luxuriant fur in subarctic woodland creatures like sables, minks, because they need thick fur to keep warm. Also aquatic mammals like beavers have sought after pelts because fur keeps them dry. Most marine mammals abandon fur for blubber, but one did the opposite and evolved dense fur- the sea otter. It also was persecuted for its pelt.
According to Darwin's Theory of Evolution, there's a reason why animals evolved luxuriant fur, it doesn't just magically happen, it isn't left to chance. I find it odd humans adore most animal fur so much yet we have none of our own and kinda seem odd on the surface with just skin even though elephants, rhinos, hippos did too, to name a few.
Trollcatman, those are good reasons for animals to have fur in general, but it doesn't point to why certain animals seem to have really nice fur when they don't seem to notice each other's fur all too much, as in, they don't spend time petting each other to feel how nice and soft their fur is. There seems to be little attraction concerning fur and more for prowess.
Is there something about the evolution of fur we are missing?
That's what I said. It did not happen by magic. Animals with luxuriant fur evolved it to keep warm in cold environments.
The fact the functional fur also happens to be asthetically pleasing to humans IS an accident. That does not contradict Darwin.
We like to look at peacock feathers. But humans don't have feathers. We like to smell flowers but we dont give off flower like scents ourselves.
Just because something has a quality, or even the trait itsself does not mean it evolved to have that quality, or even the trait itsself exists because it was selected for. It could be a by product of other things being selected for.
Modern humans have chins. But there is no evidence that chins were selected for. Chins were a by product of of the fact that our teeth shrank faster than our jaws shrank-leaving excess jaw bone thrusting forward.
That's what I said. It did not happen by magic. Animals with luxuriant fur evolved it to keep warm in cold environments.
The fact the functional fur also happens to be asthetically pleasing to humans IS an accident. That does not contradict Darwin.
We like to look at peacock feathers. But humans don't have feathers. We like to smell flowers but we dont give off flower like scents ourselves.
Just because something has a quality, or even the trait itsself does not mean it evolved to have that quality, or even the trait itsself exists because it was selected for. It could be a by product of other things being selected for.
Modern humans have chins. But there is no evidence that chins were selected for. Chins were a by product of of the fact that our teeth shrank faster than our jaws shrank-leaving excess jaw bone thrusting forward.
Perhaps but I would need proof that luxuriant fur is actually warmer and more practical than non luxuriant fur to be sure..
That's what I said. It did not happen by magic. Animals with luxuriant fur evolved it to keep warm in cold environments.
The fact the functional fur also happens to be asthetically pleasing to humans IS an accident. That does not contradict Darwin.
We like to look at peacock feathers. But humans don't have feathers. We like to smell flowers but we dont give off flower like scents ourselves.
Just because something has a quality, or even the trait itsself does not mean it evolved to have that quality, or even the trait itsself exists because it was selected for. It could be a by product of other things being selected for.
Modern humans have chins. But there is no evidence that chins were selected for. Chins were a by product of of the fact that our teeth shrank faster than our jaws shrank-leaving excess jaw bone thrusting forward.
Perhaps but I would need proof that luxuriant fur is actually warmer and more practical than non luxuriant fur to be sure..
What is called "luxuriant" is fur that prevents heat loss.
http://www.osa.org/en-us/about_osa/newsroom/news_releases/2014/fur_and_feathers_keep_animals_warm_by_scattering_l/
The scientists performed some initial calculations that showed heat loss between two bodies separated by air would be dominated by radiation, not conduction. To further explore the radiative heat loss the team created a simple computer model consisting of a hot and a cold thermostat that roughly simulated an animal’s warm body and the outside, colder environment. The two thermostats were separated by an empty space into which were added “radiative shields” that could mimic individual hairs in a fur coat.
In one version of the model, the researchers incorporated so-called black-body shields, which absorb all of the radiation that strikes them. In a second version, opaque grey-body shields were used. “A grey body has some transmission and reflection as well,” Simonis explains.
Simonis and her colleagues found that as the reflectivity of the radiative shields increased, the rate of heat transfer between the hot and cold thermostat was dramatically reduced. Adding more shields also dramatically reduced the energy loss. All together, the model suggests that the repeated backscattering of infrared light between radiative shields, like individual hairs and barbed feathers, could be the primary mechanism for the thermal insulation properties of fur and feathers.
I have a black and tan dog and I can't walk him in the summer because his fur absorbs so much heat it's dangerous for him yet black is not the dominant color in wild animals, it's mostly shades of brown or grey. The Black Bear actually seems more dark brown than truly black. Animals in snowy environments, even bears, which are top predators, tend to go all white, which is interesting.
I realize the fur and feathers keep animals warm but there are many types of fur and some are less appealing than others yet the more appealing fur seems to be the rule and this is for animals that might be in places that do not even get that cold, like certain species of rabbits.
Camouflage is also important for predators, as they will be harder to spot by their prey. And it seems most mammals are some shade of brown or grey in temperate climates. Wild cats are also less colorful than many domestic cats, most wild cats have the brown/grey fur with black camo stripes. Cats also use their fur to spread their scent, they have scent glands on their cheeks and on other parts of their body. This way it has also a social function. Picture of cute wildcat with young, they are scentmarking each other:
That pic kinda answers the question.
Cats, and sables, and so forth, have musk glands under their fur. They rub objects in their territory to mark the territory. And the rub each other (their kif and kin) to mark them as territory as well. And their fur evolved to mesh with the fur of their own kind to stimulate the glands in their skin. So thats part of why their fur is pleasant to the touch to their own species. Humans relatively recently lost fur. But we retain much of the nervous system wiring from the past, and so we have the same asthetic as other mammals tactile wise.
I always thought cats with that marking had it because it helped them catch Mackerel. They are known as Mackerel Tabbies.
I always thought cats with that marking had it because it helped them catch Mackerel. They are known as Mackerel Tabbies.
Right.
And penguins are marked the way they are so they can infiltrate parties on Downton Abbey, and chow down on gentlemen dressed in tuxedos!
I always thought cats with that marking had it because it helped them catch Mackerel. They are known as Mackerel Tabbies.
Right.
And penguins are marked the way they are so they can infiltrate parties on Downton Abbey, and chow down on gentlemen dressed in tuxedos!
Or, maybe the the men in tuxedos are marked that way due to a subliminal desire to infiltrate top secret Penguin gatherings in order to spy. Penguins secretly plot to take over the world.