The Leopardus tilcayo, or the tilcayo tiger cat, is smaller than a house cat.
For the first time in more than a century, scientists have formally described a new living cat species: a tiny, spotted wild feline found in Bolivia’s cloud forests.
The Leopardus tilcayo, or the tilcayo tiger cat, is smaller than a house cat and appears to have split from its closest tiger-cat relatives roughly 1.4 million years ago, according to a new study published in the scientific journal Current Biology.
Researchers analyzed DNA from 38 tiger cats collected across South America, including eight museum specimens. Their analysis found that animals long grouped together as tiger cats are actually five genetically distinct species.
The tilcayo weighs about 3 pounds and measures roughly 18 inches from head to body. Researchers said it has light-brown fur covered in irregular rosettes, or dark, ring-like markings.
Very little is known about the cat’s lifestyle. The researchers have examined only two living individuals and a small number of camera-trap records, though rodent remains in scat suggest it eats small mammals and the camera evidence indicates it may be nocturnal.
The study also identified a new subspecies in Peru’s Yungas region, Leopardus tigrinus antisuyo.
Researchers say they now need to determine how many tilcayo tiger cats live in the wild—and what it will take to protect them.
