I dunno if you'd know this, but what effects what a cat can or can't hybridize with? they don't seem picky about genus, with bengals obviously being from asian leopard cats, but what's the limit? I'm curious because I have a project with a bunch of bobcat hybrids but I've never been able to find verifiable evidence of that ever occurring
(bonus question that I've never been able to find an answer to: do we know the genetics of the short tails of the lynx genus? with those hybrids I kinda just went with 50/50 chance for long v. short tails)
GREAT question scientists have been asking this question for YEARS.
The "biological definition of species" (the one that says species are differentiated by being unable to mutually produce reproductively-viable offspring) is the most widely-accepted definition for purposes of standardized testing but any biologist or biology enthusiast worth 10 cents will tell you it's bullshit.
So, so commonly across walks of life we'll get a species that seemingly can't produce viable offspring w/congenerics and then WHOOPS now there's a baby w/someone in a DIFFERENT FAMILY. Happens shockingly often.
What I WILL say is that the "reproductively-viable" part does still seem to apply to cats. I'll also say that having the same # of chromosomes is pretty important to reproductive viability, and a similar # of chromosomes pretty important to being alive in the first place.
I could make a list of pre- & post-zygotic isolation mechanisms that prevent interbreeding but most of the prezygotic ones (I think all of except "size") are subverted by artificial insemination, and post-zygotic factors are VAGUE ("hybrid inviability" yes but why).
TL;DR if you can answer your own question Please publish it your name will go down in history
