From their complex genetic roots to the variations in the tabby pattern, you may be surprised by these orange tabby cat facts. Find out how these popular cats get their signature look and the exact chromosomal combination required to make it happen.

Orange Tabby Cat Color Combinations Range From Dark Red to Golden, to White

Orange tabbies can actually range from red to orange to yellow to buff. However, people generally refer to these cats as orange no matter which shade they are.

An orange tabby is the combination of two main traits:

Color

Pattern

Orange Cat Colors

According to Berkeley.edu, melanin is responsible for producing color pigment, and it comes in two types:

Eumelanin - This type of melanin produces a range of colors that include varying shades of black and brown from dark to light.

Phaeomelanin - This type of melanin produces the color in a range from red (at its highest density) to cream (at its most dilute).

So, orange fur is created by the presence of phaeomelanin.

Orange Tabby Is a Cat Fur Pattern, Not a Breed

Tabby is not a breed. It's simply a fur pattern that appears across a wide range of colors, including orange, and it's found in many breeds, including Persian cats and British Shorthairs to name a few.

Tabbies Often Have a Marking Resembling the Letter M

Tabbies generally have some degree of marking on their heads that resembles the letter M. This is more prominent in some cats than others. Orange tabbies, like tabby cats of other colors, come in a variety of patterns. Berkeley.edu describes four distinct tabby patterns.

Types of Orange Cats

The chart below shows different types of orange cats.

Pattern Description The classic tabby pattern is very common.



With this pattern, the cat's fur: Has a random series of of light and dark orange swirls

Almost looks like the cat has been tie-dyed

Carries the signature M marking on the forehead The mackerel tabby pattern is also quite common.



With this pattern, the cat's fur: Has bars or stripes

Striping is a darker shade of orange than the base color of the fur

Has the traditional M marking on the forehead The Abyssinian variation of the tabby pattern, also referred to as "ticked," is much more subtle.



This pattern produces: A dark stripe down the center of the back

Faint or "ghost" striping that is barely visible

The classic M marking on the forehead You'll find this pattern in Abyssinian cats and Somali cats in particular. The spotted tabby pattern is slightly less common than the classic and mackerel patterns.



With this spotted pattern: Fur is marked with patches rather than swirls or bars

Patches are a darker shade of orange than rest of body

Traditional M marking is still present The tabby shown here also carries the bi-color trait.

Orange Cats Are Mostly Male

There's an interesting link between the orange coloration and a cat's gender. Approximately 80 percent of all orange tabbies are males.

The gender of every cat is determined by the sex chromosomes it inherits. There is an X chromosome and a Y chromosome.

Female cats inherit two X chromosomes (XX).

Male cats inherit one X chromosome and one Y chromosome (XY).

The gene that produces the orange coloration is found on X chromosomes, so it's a sex-linked trait.

In male cats, it's fairly straightforward; they either have inherited an X chromosome that contains the orange gene, or they haven't.

It's a bit more complicated with female cats. Both XX chromosomes must carry the orange gene in order for a female be orange.

Other Orange Tabby Kitten and Cat Facts

Want to know more? Here are some more interesting facts.

According to Berkeley.edu, all orange cats are tabbies due to their genetic makeup.

The orange gene dominates all other colors except for white which, according to the Cat Fanciers' Association, technically isn't a color but rather masks a cat's true color to some degree.

These cats can also have long or short fur.

Many of these cats develop freckles on their noses and lips as they age. This is known as orange cat lentigo, and it's harmless.

Who Knew Color Could Be So Complicated?

Orange and white tabby cats may not seem quite as fancy or exciting as some other kinds of cats, but there's certainly a lot going on beneath the surface to produce one of these felines. Now that you have a better idea of what it takes for a cat to be an orange tabby, you'll likely never look at one the same way again.