Turing Patterns in Leopard and Jaguar Coats (IMAGE)

American Physical Society

Turing Patterns in Leopard and Jaguar Coats

Caption

Leopard kittens (top left) and jaguar kittens (top right) both begin life with spotted pelts. A two-stage Turing-pattern model may explain why leopards eventually end up with rosette decorations (lower left), and jaguars have polygons (lower right).

Credit

R. T. Liu, S. S. Liaw, and P. K. Maini, Physical Review E 74, 011914 (2006)

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