Trait overview

The tabby coat is characterized by a mix of two features: (1) a light background component where individual hairs have light bands and (2) a superimposed darker component where hairs have almost no banding. In blotched tabbies, the dark component is expanded into loosely organised structures forming wide whorls. The genetic determination of tabby coloration is complicated (and not fully understood), but different mutations in the gene LVRN play a key role in forming the blotched or mackerel tabby coat phenotype.

Gene name(s)

LVRN

Inheritance

Autosomal recessive

More common in the following breeds

Current data does not indicate that this trait is more common among specific breeds.

Citations

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1220893