Lecruz Bengals
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Colours & Patterns
Bengals are best known for their wild appearance, luxurious coats, and captivating patterns that set them apart from any other domestic breed. From bold rosettes to flowing marble swirls, and colours ranging from warm browns to icy snows, silvers, blues, and even the mysterious melanistic and charcoal varieties—no two bengals are ever truly the same. This page is designed to help you understand the range of coat colours and patterns, their unique genetics, and what makes each one so special in both appearance and ancestry.
Brown ​
Brown bengals are the most recognisable and widely adored colour variation in the breed—often chosen for their resemblance to the Asian Leopard Cat. This colour encompasses a broad range of warm-toned background shades. Depending on genetics and lineage, the base coat may appear as golden, tawny, honey, buff, tan, beige, cream or caramel. This diversity makes each brown bengal visually unique, ranging from soft and subtle to rich and fiery.
The contrast pattern over the base coat is typically black or dark brown but can be softer in colour, displayed in distinct rosettes, spots, or marbled swirls. The most desirable coats have high contrast with sharp, inky markings that stand out boldly from the base colour. A glittered, shimmering coat is common in quality lines and adds to the breed’s luxury appeal. Eye colours in brown bengals are typically green or gold, though hazel and amber shades also occur.
Brown bengal coat colour variations below
All the coats pictured are Lecruz cats.
Silver
Silver bengals are one of the most visually dramatic coat types, easily recognised by their cool-toned, high-contrast appearance. These cats have a base coat that ranges from white to pale silver, overlaid with deep inky black markings in spotted, rosetted, marble, or charcoal patterns. Their unique look is created by the presence of the inhibitor gene (I), which reduces the production of pigment (melanin) in the coat. Due to the inhibitor gene you can have bengals in colours like silver lynx (a silver seal lynx point!). The silver gene acts as a mask, stripping away the warm golden and brown tones seen in other colours. However, the effectiveness of this gene varies between individuals. In some cases, small amounts of warm colour may still be visible—most often around the face, ears, and feet. This is called "tarnish" and is typically seen as a bronze, pinkish, or gold hue and is not desirable in silver bengals.
Silver bengal coat colour variations below
All the coats pictured are Lecruz cats.
Snow
The "snow" category in bengals includes three visually distinct coat types, all of which originated from siamese and burmese cats introduced into early foundation lines during the breed's development. They are: seal lynx point, seal mink, and seal sepia. When a cat also carries the dilute (blue) gene, these colours can appear in their dilute forms—blue lynx point, blue mink, and blue sepia.
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Seal Lynx Point (cs/cs)
Seal lynx are typically born pure white or with very faint markings. As they mature, their pattern gradually emerges—often starting at the extremities (face, legs, and tail). Lynx's patterns are soft brown or grey on a snow-white or creamy base. One of the most striking features of this variation is their crystal-clear, blue eyes which are exclusive to lynx's.
Seal Mink (cb/cs)
Seal mink are usually born with visible markings, which darken and become richer over time. Their base coat can range from ivory to cream with a warm, buttery undertone, while their pattern may appear in a warm caramel or fawn shade. Minks are known for their unique aqua or turquoise eye colour, a blend of blue and green.
Seal Sepia (cb/cb)
Seal sepia are the darkest of the snow group and are usually born with a strong, defined pattern. Their background colour ranges from cream to golden beige, with bold markings in dark seal brown or chocolate tones. Sepias typically have golden to green eyes, adding to their intense, jungle-like expression.
Seal lynx
Seal mink
Seal sepia
Melanistic/Solid ​
The melanistic bengal displays a rich, solid-coloured background coat which often appears almost completely solid at first glance, but upon closer inspection—especially under natural sunlight or bright lighting—you can see the ghost-like spotting or marble patterning emerge. These hidden markings are known as "ghost markings" and can resemble the rosettes or swirls seen in standard bengals, only much more subtle.
Melanistic bengals can occur in a variety of colour ranges including:
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Brown
Snow
Silver
Blue
Melanistic/solid bengal coat colour variations below
Melanistic
Smoke (silver) melanistic
Seal mink
Charcoal Patterning ​
The Apb/a combination is the only pairing that produces the charcoal appearance. The Apb gene alone doesn’t produce the charcoal look unless it’s matched with the solid gene (a). It’s important to note that the Apb gene is only found in descendants of the ALC (Asian leopard cat) and not in any domestic breeds—making it quite special. Even many generations down the line, cats carrying the Apb gene still retain a little piece of their wild ancestry in their coat genetics.
Charcoal bengals are prized not just for their looks, but also because of the rare and wild genetics behind them. They’re perfect for breeders looking to enhance pattern contrast, depth, and that elusive “wild” expression in their lines
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What makes the charcoal pattern especially unique is its genetic makeup. It only appears when a kitten inherits two different agouti genes:
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One copy of the Apb gene (inherited from the Asian Leopard Cat)
One copy of the solid (a) gene (from domestic lines)
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Charcoal isn’t a colour—it’s a pattern layer that sits over the top of any existing colour and pattern. So, you can have charcoal browns, snows, silvers, and more. Because this overlay deepens the appearance of the base colour, charcoals tend to look much darker and more intense than standard bengals of the same colour. They often show striking facial masks, bold cape-like shading along the back, and an overall wild, dramatic look.
Melanistic/solid bengal coat colour variations below
Brown charcoal
Silver charcoal
Seal lynx charcoal
Spotted patterning
Spotted bengals are the most iconic and instantly recognisable within the breed. Their coats feature distinct spots or rosettes that mimic the markings of wild cats like leopards and ocelots. These spots can vary in size, shape, and arrangement—ranging from single-tone spots to complex rosettes with two or three tones and defined outlines. The pattern should have a horizontal flow, rather than vertical striping, and ideally display high contrast against the base coat. Spotted bengals can come in all recognised colours, including brown, snow, silver, blue, and charcoal variations. Each spotted bengal is truly unique, and when paired with a glittered, soft coat, the effect is breathtaking
Example of the different types of rosetting below
Embryonic rosette
Little - no second colour on the rim of the rosette
Paw print rosette
Open and irregular, giving it a more natural, wild appearance
Clouded rosette
Irregularly shaped rosettes that often interlock or overlap slightly
Marble patterning
The marble pattern in bengals is a swirling, fluid coat design that’s unlike the spotted or rosetted look most commonly associated with the breed. Instead of distinct spots, marbles display a horizontal, flowing pattern made up of broad swirls and streaks, often a wildcat’s camouflage. This pattern should never resemble a bullseye or classic tabby target pattern.
Marbles can come in all recognised colours (brown, snow, silver, blue, charcoal, melanistic, etc.), and the contrast between their markings and base coat is key to quality.
The ideal marble has:
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Horizontal flow (not circular)
Sharp contrast between the markings and background
A clear, unbroken pattern that wraps fluidly around the body
Often displays multi-toning or "open" areas in the pattern, similar to how rosettes have centres.
Some marbles can develop into what's known as a "chaos pattern"—a highly artistic, random, wild-looking version that is especially prized by breeders and judges. While not as common in pet homes as your spotted bengals, marbles are just as striking and unique—no two marbles will ever look the same.
Example of the different types of rosetting below
Chaotic
Pattern compromised of swirls and splashes in different sizes and shape
Sheeted
Solid across large areas however pattern can take up to two years to "open up"
