Scientists only recently officially described it as a separate species — Leopardus tilcayo. This is the first discovery of a new species of living cat in more than a hundred years. And it happened almost by accident.
What the tilcayo looks like
It is a very small animal:
- body length (head + torso) — 42,5–50,5 cm
- tail length — 25–26,5 cm
- weight — about 1,3–1,4 kg
That is, it is smaller than an ordinary domestic cat. The coat is light brown, covered with large irregular dark brown or black rosettes — open or half-closed. The ears are short and rounded, "like a teddy bear's," the muzzle is small, the whiskers long. It looks like a miniature leopard.
The story of Tigrino
Tilcayo — this is the name of the species (Leopardus tilcayo).
The principal (holotype) specimen — male nicknamed Tigrino. It was found as a kitten at about 2016–2017 years of age by a local resident. He mistook it for a domestic kitten and kept it at home for about a year. When the animal began to show wild instincts (including hunting chickens), it was handed over to the Senda Verde Wildlife Sanctuary in the Yungas region. The cat is now about 10 years old, and it still lives there. It was its DNA that became key to describing the species.
Only very few individuals are known: this male in captivity, possibly one more living specimen, and several camera-trap records.
What genetics showed
Researchers analyzed the genomes of 38 cats, including 26 representatives of the genus Leopardus. According to a paper published on 17 September 2026 in the journal Current Biology, the tigrina diverged from its closest relatives roughly 1,4 million years ago — in the early Pleistocene.
As a result, the "tiger cat" complex of South America is now divided into five separate species. Additionally, a new subspecies from the Peruvian Yungas has been described — Leopardus tigrinus antisuyo.
Where it lives and what is known about it
So far it has been confirmed only in the cloud forests of the Yungas on the eastern slopes of the Andes in the La Paz Department (Nor Yungas Province, near the village of Arapata, at an elevation of about 1570 m). This is a transitional zone between the Andes and Amazonia, with high humidity and steep terrain.
Population size, exact range, behavior, diet, and reproductive characteristics are practically unknown. The authors of the study emphasize: the discovery should become an impetus for the protection of these forests, because the ecosystem is already under threat.
Why this matters
The discovery of Leopardus tilcayo shows how little we still know about biodiversity even in relatively well-studied groups of mammals. The Yungas cloud forests are a unique ecosystem where different climatic zones intersect and where species are preserved that are found nowhere else.
Nature continues to present surprises even in the era of satellites and genetic analysis. Every new species reminds us: ecosystems are not static lists, but living, interconnected communities. And the preservation of habitats is the key factor in their future.
Attention: lately, a great many fake and AI-generated videos and photographs of "cute little leopard-patterned kittens" have appeared online. Most of them have nothing to do with the real tilcayo. The real Tigrino lives in the Bolivian sanctuary Senda Verde, and reliable footage can be found only in official sources (the sanctuary's account, National Geographic, AP). Do not confuse AI content with the real animal.
Why this matters
The discovery of Leopardus tilcayo shows how little we still know about biodiversity even in relatively well-studied groups of mammals. The Yungas cloud forests are a unique ecosystem where different climatic zones intersect and where species are preserved that are found nowhere else.
Nature continues to present surprises even in the era of satellites and genetic analysis. Every new species reminds us: ecosystems are not static lists, but living, interconnected communities. And the preservation of habitats is the key factor in their future.
Tigrino is quietly watching us today. GM
