The forest shaped the bengal ear
Bengals descended from a tiny, tree-dwelling wildcat. We can better appreciate nature’s design by studying the leopard cat’s and other small tree-dwelling cat’s ears.
From left to right, the three small, tree-dwelling wildcats seen in the collage above are a leopard cat, an ocelot, and a rusty-spotted cat. Three small ground-dwelling, grassland cats—the serval, caracal (photographed by David Bygott), and jungle cat—are found on the bottom row.
One immediately notices the differences in the ears of the tree-dwelling cats and the grassland cats—more especially, their size and set. Apart from the caracal, the other five cats have somewhat similar forms.
Given shape as the uniting element, let’s examine why nature has molded these ears this way. All their ears are deeply cupped. Apart from the caracal, the others are circular at the top, broad-based, and homogeneous in width. This form is made to funnel sound from the most significant angle into the ear.
The lynx-like tips on the caracal perform the same purpose as the broad, rounded form of the other five cats. They direct sound into the ear.
This should be the most important feature of the ears in breeds of cats that are designed to reflect their ancestral legacy, including the Bengal since the highly cupped, broad-based, uniform-width, and round-topped ears are a conventional and deliberate design for wildcats.
Five of the six shares in common the ear form of the collage, but the ear set of the top row cats differ significantly from those of the bottom row. Typically listening over long grasses to find their next food, the grassland cats live and hunt on the ground. Their tall ears are so positioned straight ahead on top of their heads.

Living and hunting in trees, the little, tree-dwelling cats must be able to detect sounds from all directions. These cats dwell in trees. Hence, their lower set and forward tilt of their ears enable them to pick sounds from the sides and under the cat. Additionally, this ear set and forward tilt contour with the body as the cat advances forward, preventing the ears from jutting out too far.
As the cat leaps on its prey, high-set ears are more prone to rips and tears from tree limbs. Rips and tears in the ear would impede the cat’s hearing and lower its chances of survival, as research on the survival-of-the-fittest theory indicates. From both front and rear perspectives, the ears seem smaller when they tilt forward instead of pointing straight up.
Bengal ears with the appropriate form will often seem significant on kittens, which is why they are occasionally missed in breeder selection as “too large.” An SBT kitten is collaged next to the F1, from which it descends in the black-and-white photo.
The kitten has too big ears. But breeders have to give shape first priority over size and let the ears grow. Since kitten ears develop quicker than the skull, some months before the skull stops producing, the ears will achieve their mature size. Correct shape and set will eventually help the proportion to improve.
When the ears are placed appropriately, breeders sometimes claim that their cats will “grow into their ears,” which is true. The cat will not “grow into” the ears, though, if they are positioned on top of the head—as those of the grassland wildcats in the first picture suggest.
As kittens grow into adult cats, their ear form remains the same. See the kitten’s growth in the collage featuring the same cat at three separate ages.

The first image is at seven weeks, the second at five months, and the third at one year. Still, the form is the same. From the middle picture (at five months), the ear size stays the same until the image on the right (at one year). It is the head that grows.
For many years, it seemed as though achieving small ears was breeders’ main concern. Still, when triangular, little ears are not particularly wild-looking.How the Forest Shaped the Bengal Ear.
Look at the half-sisters curled into the kitty bed. The left-leaning cat has narrow, triangular ears but little ones. Although the cat on the right has far more oversized ears overall, they really resemble the wild look more closely than the little ears on the left.
Wide-based and more rounded toward the top, the ears on the right Although the cat on the right has far more oversized ears, their form suggests a more feral look. Usually, though, breeders would claim the cat on the left has superior ears only because of its smaller size. The cat on the right would “look” smaller if it had a more significant forward tilt to its ears.
Forward tilt can conceal a number of ear flaws, including size and form. Trying forward tilt can help breeders who find they struggle with ear form make the corrective process more tolerable since the ears will “look” better than they really are.
Apart from forward tilt influencing the appearance of ear size, where the ears sit on the head also influences their appearance. Although the kitten collaged with the drawing has a great form, the ears on the head are overly high.
The identical ears would “look” smaller if you lower the ears or add more top skulls. Imagine now not only reducing the ears but also adding forward tilt; the ears would seem significantly smaller even if their actual size would not change.
Given that ears are a constant challenge for breeders, it may be quite motivating when other catteries show improvement or excellent outcomes. A few cats with over-groomed ears have lately gone viral on social media and drawn lots of compliments. Michael Turner let me show one over-groomed ear image of his cat.
The mother of this cat left the other ear alone after overgrooming one at birth. When done on both sides, over-grooming produces amazing-looking ea, but when done on just one side, the effect is far more apparent.
Less than half of the ear flap physically separates from the head when kittens are born. Newborn ears, therefore, always seem small. The ear flap shows very little active blood flow at this point. Lack of bleeding makes damage done to the ear flap at this point virtually invisible.

The ear flaps fully open between two and six weeks; hence, ears often develop disproportionately during this period. Early on, over-grooming of the ear results in the removal of the unfused tip.
The ear becomes rounder when the ear flap widens and spreads the area where the tip was removed. The scar tissue stretches and flattens as either side of the expanding ear pulls it larger. Unlike normal ear tissue, this scar tissue is far less elastic and pliable.
As the scar tissue tightens, any notches or uneven edges resulting from the mother’s grooming progressively flatten. This scar tissue causes the point of removal to lack the fine hair edge observed on the standard rim of the ear. You will also notice an artificial hairline around the overgroomed ear.
Sometimes we find cats where this has occurred; our natural presumption is that the breeder clipped the ears since the shape seems so ideal. The mother most certainly overdone it.
This cat with one over-groomed ear and one natural ear shows how this round shape develops from the scar tissue being stretched as the ear grows; it is not because a breeder clipped them to perfection equally on both sides.
If folks sharing kittens and cats with over-groomed ears included a disclaimer noting they knew the ear was over-groomed, it would be helpful. Sometimes, the cat that is being published is a gorgeous one deserving of praise.
However, some people find it challenging to commend the cat since they don’t want to be perceived as endorsing this abnormal ear because of uncertainty about the state of the ears. For new breeders who might not know that the ears are not natural, the lack of a disclaimer in these images creates uncertainty.
It would be unfortunate for a beginner breeder to purchase a breeding cat with over-groomed ears, knowing that the cat would not generate those ears. Buying a female who carries the overgrooming habit of the mother would be the only reasonable expectation of that occurring. It is not an honest approach to get better in hearing. For their further care or for their other information and features we have been.
Sometimes, as breeders, we have to wonder: what is the aim? Minuscule Or accurate? The Bengal will generally go through phases when the best ears do not seem minor to reach the precise ear.
These cats will suffer in the show hall as, at the point of publishing, size takes precedence above shape and set. Most Bengal standards first specify the ear size. Having the size in the first place position in the description tells the judges that size is the most crucial factor of the ear.
Bengal breeders should ask whether rearranging the ear description would help the show hall and encourage breeders to concentrate more on shape and set and less on size by talking with their breed committees and breed chairs.
Judges should eventually address the form of ears, such as these on Lot of Spots Rayne Dancer; most of the time, they refer to size.
Set & Size for Bengal Ear Sets
Most individuals prioritize ear size when we learn from breeders what they are searching for in a Bengal cat or view their remarks on public forums. Everyone is either complementing ear size or trying to shrink the ear size; some are hoping a kitten would fit their ears.
We regret to break the ear size bubble; when considering the three main factors of the ears, shape, set, and size, ear size should genuinely be the least of your concerns.

Talking about ear size is almost impossible without considering the form of the head; the ear set determines most of the perception of size since reality shapes this aspect. On the left of the collage is a Leopard cat and an Abyssinian.
Original Abyssinian and the reduced back skull Leopard cat make up the left half of the collage. On the right side is the original photo of the Leopard cat and added back skull to the Abbysinian. We added an extra rear skull to him on the Abyssinian to stretch his skull’s length behind his ears.
This gives the ears a more minor appearance even though their dimensions have not changed. We deleted the back skull from the Leopard cat, which gives the ears a more significant impression.In none of the images have the ears themselves changed.
This basic sketch also illustrates the same idea. The two images have one line change: the line separating the ears has been shifted upward. This line would show the distinction between ears set on a head in which the head does extend behind them and ears set on a head without a skull behind them.
The first thing one should grasp regarding ear size is how much the existence or absence of the rear skull influences it.
Following the contour of the face in the frontal view, the TICA Bengal criterion advises the ears should be “set as much on the side as on top of the head.” What precisely does that refer to?
View the Leopard cat collage alongside the ginger cat.
The top of the skull and the side of the skull define the ears of the Leopard cat. Their placement causes the ears to tilt somewhat outward. Look now at the ears of the ginger cat. The ears are situated more on top of the head than on the side.
Furthermore, the ginger cat’s ears point not slightly outward but rather upward. Keeping the inner corners of the ears wide apart further enhances the set. One will find the ginger cat has almost twice as much width between its ears; the Leopard cat has roughly three times the width of its nasal bridge between its ears.
What thus does a good and terrible ear set look like on a Bengal? On the SBT Bengal, the distance between the ears is still under work on. Once more, the ears are strongly influenced by the head form.
The Bengal has lost a lot of height or curve to the top of the head, therefore lessening the space between the ears. Though we can separate the ears, it will take many years of effort to restore that curvature back.
Establishing a good ear set is quite challenging since several elements are involved. The form of the skull is a major determinant, as has been already indicated. Important determinants of appearance also are ear tilt and angle. View the two cats atop the collage on the left. Though looks might be misleading, the cat on the right appears to have a better ear set.
At the top of the collage, both cats have their ears precisely in the same spot; the outward angle, forward tilt, and skull form provide variation in look. With the cat on top right broader at the top of the skull than the cat on top left, the ears are further apart, and the ears are angled somewhat outward with the desirable forward tilt and cupping that was covered in the last blog.
Although the width between the ears, the forward tilt, and the outward angle are all good, the ear set of both cats is on top of the head.
Turn now to view the bottom pair of cats. However, the cat on the bottom right has bigger ears, and their set points are more on the side of the skull than on top. Where the attachments of his inner and outer ears are located reveals the most straightforward indicator of his ear set.
Compared to the other two cats in the collage, the cat in the bottom right picture has a lower outer ear attachment. To show the angle’s steepness, we have lined the inner edge of the ears from there to their outer edge.
The ear is more uniformly situated on both the top and the side of the head, the greater the slope. One has to be careful not to allow the angle go too far toward vertical as then the ears would be put too far on the side of the head like an Oriental Shorthair.

But how can the Bengal have the set of the Leopard cat? You must, first, maintain the width between the ears. Sadly, while kittens’ heads are still developing, this isn’t easy to keep an eye on. Looking at the parents is the best way to seek for breadth between the ears.
Although on kittens, looking at the ears themselves is not particularly beneficial, you can look at the skull form since it influences the appearance of the ears. Choosing kittens with notable rear skull and top skull—the roundness between the ears—will help to determine how the ears look at last.