native cat

American  

noun

1. any of several catlike dasyures of the genus Dasyurus, of Australia and Tasmania: most populations are now rare.

---

native cat British  

noun

1. any of various Australian catlike carnivorous marsupials of the genus Dasyurus

---

Etymology

Origin of native cat

First recorded in 1875–80

Example Sentences

But when you’re trying to nab Washington’s most endangered native cat, a little stink is the least of your challenges.

From Seattle Times • May 12, 2023

Being an alien, Bowie has to insert lenses over his native cat eyes — y'know, other atmospheres and all that — to appear human.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 12, 2016

And yet, while many logged forests have been hard-hit ecologically, they still show pockets of remarkable biodiversity, including all five of the native cat species.

From Nature • Apr. 17, 2013

The white and the black cockatoo are common to the three colonies, as are many kinds of the smaller parrots, the kangaroo, and the kangaroo-rat, the numbat, the opossum, the native cat, and many others.

From The Bushman — Life in a New Country by Landor, Edward Wilson

The native cat is the only other carnivorous animal we possess; but its depredations extend no farther than the poultry-yard.

From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 10, No. 271, September 1, 1827 by Various