wrote:


My question was, have bush cats evolved into a different species of
feline? Yowie said no, so I'll accept that, since I know much less
about it than she does. Still, I find it interesting that bush cats
are *larger* than house cats. As far as I know, feral cats are the same
size as pet cats are in the US, so that's what led me to think that
the bush cats were evolving away from their origins.

My guess would be only because, as totally "wild" creatures,
selective breeding entered the mix - size became a survival
"plus". "Feral" cats in the rest of the world haven't been
that long separated from the domestic - or rather, their
ranks are constantly receiving fresh infusions of abandoned
domestic cats.

Well, perhaps
they are, but they still haven't gone far enough (yet) to be unable to
interbreed with a house cat. (*And* to produce fertile offspring -
that's the test of whether something is the same species. Many different
species can interbreed, but their offspring are sterile.)

Donkeys and horses, for example. (A "breeding pair" of
mules might simplify things considerably!) ;-)