Expert: Jonathan Wright - 2/22/2005

Question
I have been told that the big cats can't purr. That the largest cat that can still purr is the Mountain Lion.

Can big cats still purr? If not what is the largest cat that can purr

Answer
Dear Richard

Thanks for your question. I have looked up various publications and websites and the information seems to be contradictory, even within the same website.

http://www.5tigers.org/Kids/basics/AskAnnie/Q8.htm states that scientists are undecided whether big cats can purr.

http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/big.html states that ‘big cats' differ from ‘small cats' because pf the hyoid bone, which connects the tongue to the roof of the mouth. The hyoid bone has an elastic segment in big cats, but is hard all over in small cats. The elastic segment allows big cats to roar, but prevents them from purring in the same manner small cats can. Small cats can purr when they inhale and exhale, but big cats can only produce a 'purring' type of noise, when they exhale. To confuse the matter, http://www.azdrybones.com/felids.htm implies that big cats can purr both while inhaling and exhaling; the other cats purr on exhaling only. I think that the site got its facts the wrong way round!

The answer to your question depends on whether you consider this noise to be a true purr or not. If you do, the largest purring cat is a big cat (see below). If like
http://www.tigerfdn.com/Tigerworld/trivia2.htm http://science.howstuffworks.com/question394.htm and
http://madsci.wustl.edu/posts/archives/may96/828639116.Zo.r.html you think roaring cats cannot purr and that a true purr can only be produced when the cat inhales as well as when it exhales, the largest purring cat probably is a mountain lion.

http://www.wildcatconservation.org/faq.shtml states that all cats are able to purr.

http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/zoo00/zoo00113.htm and http://www.fortworthzoo.org/conserve/survival.html states that big cats can purr loudly, when exhaling.
http://madsci.wustl.edu/posts/archives/may96/828639116.Zo.r.html states that leopards make deep, purring sounds.
http://www.msah.com/bulletin70/ states that lions and cheetahs purr. http://www.lionresearch.org/FAQ/FAQS.html states that lions purr occasionally as they exhale.

http://ladywildlife.com/animal/bengaltiger.html http://www.fortworthzoo.org/conserve/survival.html  and http://pudang.tripod.com/physio.html state that tigers purr only when breathing out, due to their larger nasal morphology. http://frank.mtsu.edu/~jpurcell/Walker/Wildlife/tigers.html states that tigers purr when they feel good, or sometimes when they are in pain. http://www.lairweb.org.nz/tiger/communication.htmlstates that some people claim to have heard a tiger purr, while others are certain that tigers cannot purr.

As there is so much disagreement whether or not big cats purr, it is difficult to give a definitive answer to your question. Looking at the evidence, it seems that tigers can produce a purring sound and, if this is defined as a purr, the tiger is the largest purring cat. If the tiger cannot produce a purring sound, the largest purring cat is the lion. If a purr is defined as a sound, which can be produced by inhaling as well as exhaling, the largest purring cat is a mountain lion.

Personally, I think that the bulk of the evidence indicates that the tiger can purr and is therefore the largest purring cat.

All the best

Jonathan