Beyond Birds and Mice, Free-Ranging Cats Eat a Surprising Number of Insects

What your cat is really eating when it goes outside

We are biologists who for many years have been trying to figure out what feral or outdoor-roaming pet cats eat outside

Beyond birds and mice, free-ranging cats eat a surprising number of insects

Does that look tasty? SKashkin/iStock / Getty Images PlusIt’s pretty commonly known, and not very startling, that free-ranging cats eat birds and small rodents. But the degree to which they eat insects might surprise you. We are biologists who for many years have been trying to figure out what feral or outdoor-roaming pet cats eat outside. When domesticated cats – Felis catus – live freely in the wild or are allowed to hunt outside the homes whe…