New cat species discovered in Bolivia after a century
Summary and headline written by AI from the source article. How we work
Scientists in Bolivia identified a new cat species, the tilcayo ( Leopardus tilcayo ), living in the Yungas cloud forests.
Researchers had previously classified small spotted cats across South America as one species, Leopardus tigrinus, but genetic evidence revealed at least four distinct species exist. The tilcayo proved unique because it hadn’t been formally described at all, unlike other recent cat discoveries that involved reclassifying known subspecies.
The discovery began when a Bolivian family brought their pet cat, Tigrino, to the Senda Verde Wildlife Sanctuary. They initially believed Tigrino was a domestic cat but noticed its wild behaviour when it hunted chickens. Genetic testing of Tigrino and another rescued tilcayo confirmed the species’ distinct lineage. Researchers determined the tilcayo separated from other tiger cats approximately 1.4 million years ago, a significant divergence, as humans and Neanderthals shared a common ancestor around 800,000 years ago.
Paola Nogales-Ascarrunz, the researcher who discovered the species, named it after the local name for the cat to acknowledge traditional knowledge of the region. The tilcayo is small, weighing only 1.4 kilograms (3 pounds), and has a spotted coat with rounded ears. It represents the first new cat species described since the Uruguayan pampas cat in 1923.
