Cats

The modern cat of today belongs to one of the 36 (thirty six) species of "Felidae", that can trace their family tree back 36 million years.
Until recently, the cat family Felidae was classified into 3 (Three) groups based on their similarities and differences:-
Panthera - Big cats
Felis - Small cats
Acinonyx - Cheetahs
Now, scientists have reclassified them into eight groups called lineages.
Panthera Ocelot Lynx Caracal
Bay Cat Asian Leopard Cat Puma
Domestic cat

The domestication of the cat has had a interesting history with man, since Ancient Egypt where they were worshipped as Demigods, to being proclaimed evil and associated with the devil in England & Europe where hundreds of thousands of cats were burned to death. As the bubonic plague spread throughout Europe in 1334, people once again realized the importance of cats and by the late 1600's the first cat flaps were installed in households of France to accommodate the family cat.
Nowadays there are 37 recognized breeds with countless variations in colour.