Cats have almost 300 facial expressions.
Cats have a vast range of facial expressions
A new study has revealed that felines have a far larger repertoire of faces than previously expected and their ability to show their emotions may have evolved as a result of living with humans.
The research involved dozens of moggies being filmed at the CatCafe Lounge in Los Angeles with experts analysing how the animals interacted with each other.
They identified 276 different combinations of facial muscle movements, each of which they argue represents an expression.
Dr. Brittany Florkiewicz, who led the study for Lyon College in Arkansas, explained that the results show a hidden depth to cat communication.
She said: "The main takeaway is that cat communication is more complex than we previously thought.
"But thanks to the development of Facial Action Coding Systems (where individual muscle movements are tracked), we are now able to uncover communicative complexity among mammals that may have been previously overlooked."