Lions ___1___ the savannah are a staple of nature documentaries. But the millions of little lions that live in our homes and neighborhoods also lead fascinating lives. We know more about those lives now, because a two-year-long study used radio-transmitters to track cats at the southern edge of the cities of Champaign and Urbana in Illinois. ___2___. The study is in the Journal of Wildlife Management. [Jeff Horn et al., "Home Range, Habitat Use, and Activity Patterns of Free-Roaming Domestic Cats"]

The entire kittie cohort included both housecats and feral cats, and ranged over almost 6,300 acres. One feral cat’s range ___3___ 1,351 acres. New York’s Central Park covers 843 acres.

Owned cats with homes roamed way less than their feral counterparts. But they still ___4___ just under five acres. The pets were highly active just 3 percent of the time, compared with 14 percent for the cats that need to find their own food. The work should ___5___ protecting species that the cats hunt, and inform the efforts to stop the spread of feline contagious diseases.
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