Black tabby, anyone?

I went to the shelter today to take more pictures of the new kitties. This little guy was like greased lightning, very difficult to get any picture. I thought at first he was pure black, but he's actually a black tabby. You can see the bullseye fairly well in the photo.

Wow, what a beautiful kitty! I have never seen a black tabby before... Gorgeous!

Oh he's too cool looking! I've seen some black cats where you can see tabby markings in the right light, but never black on black shades like that.

I remember reading somewhere that all black cats are actually tabby, but because the pigment is so dark and similar in tones you can't see it. Same with most white cats - they usually have tabby markings but the pigment is so faded that you can't see it. Like CarolinaLima's Bugsy is actually a flame point (you can see that on his cute little nose), but the coloration is so faded into white that he appears to be white.

Our Bear is a black tabby. When he first came to us at 5 weeks old you could barely see his black on black stripes if the light was good. Now that he is older you can't even see his body stripes anymore but if the light is really good you can still just barely see his M on his forehead. I'm sure that will eventually fade too which will make me sad since it always puts a smile on my face when I spot it.

I'd love to see how the tabby markings develop on this little guy (I think it's a guy) as he grows. On the other hand I'd rather see him adopted before he grows too long.

Aww, he so cute!

Ah, adoption vibes for the little cutie!!!

Black cats are the hardest to place so he will need all the advantages he can get!

Wow! He's amazingly beautiful. Good luck in getting him adopted.

Aww, I hope he/she gets adopted fast.
Almost all solid color cats have visible ghost patterns (especially reds) when they are kittens. They usually fade when they grow. In purebreds the ghost markings are usually a bit harder to see as breeders are trying to get a good even color and are intentionally trying to get rid of the markings. I think only Egyptian Maus are bred to have strong ghost markings (in black smokes).

One of my cats has a solid black sister who clearly had spots in her black fur. Here is a link to a picture of her where the markings are showing a bit, the pic is too large so I don't post it directly here: click. (My kitty is the one who doesn't quite fit in ).

What colour is he underneath the fur? He looks like a smoke!