Squirrels and raccoons obviously can too. See interesting discussions in this r/awwducation thread

I can do it too, but only once

That's not climbing, it's falling with style.

My favourite kitten has been observed to do this as well. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clouded_leopard

I got to meet some with my daughter! They have cat like personalities. They also don’t have pads on there paws. Just sharp ass claws and fur.

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Oh yeah those magnificent felines.

And landing hard.

Op’s title is completely wrong. Lots of animals can climb down a tree head first. I can’t think of many insects or spiders or lizards that can’t.

Snakes literally don’t have a choice.

One of the few

That's just called lithobraking.

we had a cat who could do that

And they also look super cute

Silly question, but why are flexible ankles required to do this?

Considering snakes, I wouldn't say it's accurate at all.

They said they've seen a woodchuck come down a tree head first? Idk if I'm buying that. I think they saw a possum. Pretty much any animal that climbs is going to be able to come down head first. Raccoons obviously but they aren't doing any zigging and zagging and the tree has to be pretty rough. Squirrles are just no fucks given, literally balls to the wall. You even seen one of those little guys run headfirst down a brick wall at full speed? There's not another mammal in North America that can do that. Can't be many in the world.

Terrafaceplanting

I have a huge redwood in my yard and the squirrels chase each other around in circles horizontal to the ground

My cat does that all the time

It's called landing with purpose

I’ve never seen a woodchuck and didn’t know those chubby things could climb a tree.

Right. Now since you mentioned it, probably the article should change it to “mammals”.

Can your cat stop while doing it, or is it more of a controlled fall where the cat runs down the tree?

Squirrels, racoons, one of the big cats (I forget which once, but there's one that can!), Monkeys, etc

The title is basically bunk lol

They have to turn them backwards, essentially, so that their claws can grip the bark on the way down.

Probably plenty of tree-climbing mustelids, also definitely coatis, etc

I'm willing to give this a try. Pretty sure i can pull it off, though it's not going to look good.

And pine martens

So can Count Dracula

And quickly, I bet.

Supposedly the Norwegian Forest Cat is the only breed of small cat that climbs down trees headfirst, although it's usually said to be more the controlled fall thing the other poster says -- they just run down and manage not to crash at the bottom. But the first hit on YouTube for 'Norwegian Forest Cat climb down tree headfirst' shows one making its way down at a fairly leisurely pace:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Izq1hMUPvY

For other breeds they say the shape of the toes/claws forces the cat to go forwards, but somehow Norwegian Forest Cats just have exceptionally strong claws and forepaws that let them do the job. That always sounded weird to me, though; their claws and arms don't look that different from other cats. Surely it's just a quirk from the breeding program?

Yeah, she goes down really slow until the last 4 feet or so when it turns into a kinda run-jump. She tends to go more diagnally headfirst rather than straight up and down though

They have an adaptation that is sometimes called a “pseudo thumb”which is actually an elongated wrist bone. It helps them grip bamboo. Red pandas are sooooo cute!