Tabbies come in two basic colorations - red, brown or ginger
tabbies (with a rich orange/gold/red coat), and silver or grey
tabbies (coat colouring including silver/grey/black). Black
tabbies (as in the picture above) are often wrongly called
"brown tabbies" (especially in the US), but they are genetically
black and have nothing to do with the "brown" (chocolate) gene,
so the name can be misleading. The tabby stripes can either take
the form of a distinct mackerel or fishbone striping, or they
may be more loosely splotched. Alternatively, they may have a
spotted coat, which is actually stripes broken up into distinct
blotches, or they may be ticked. This is where the hairs have
distinct bands of colour on them, breaking the tabby patterning
up into a salt-and-pepper appearance. Many tabbies have a
distinct 'M' marking on their forehead--the mark of the true
tabby. There are several legends about where this came from.
Also, all tabby cats have a brick red or rose-colored nose and
light-colored areas around the