Fig. 1.

Kinematics of cat grooming. (A) A domestic cat grooms its fur. (B) Close-up view of its tongue showing the anisotropic papillae, which point to the left toward the throat. (C) The four phases of cat grooming. (D and E) Thermal images of a cat grooming its leg. White colors are hottest and dark blue colors are coolest as shown by the legend on the right. During the groom (D), fur is separated by the motion of the tongue, exposing the skin. Heat from the tongue and the skin are indicated by the white color. After the groom (E), evaporation causes a temperature drop of $17°$ C as shown by the dark purple.