The clouded tiger cat (Leopardus pardinoides), also called the clouded oncilla, is a small spotted wild cat of the cloud forests of the Andes and the highlands of southern Central America. It lives mostly between about 1,500 and 3,000 metres above sea level, and its range runs sparsely from Costa Rica and Panama south through the Andes to northwestern Argentina, with nearly half of it in Colombia. Its coat mixes red, orange, gray and yellow, marked with irregular cloudy rosettes that sometimes merge into bands, and it has a long bushy tail. A head and body length of 41 to 54 centimetres and an average weight of about 2.3 kilograms make it a small cat. Mainly nocturnal, it eats small rodents, reptiles and ground-dwelling birds. It was long folded into the oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus); a 2024 study argued that the Andean and Central American populations deserve species status, and the IUCN still counts it under the oncilla.
Facts
Classification
System (Realm) ThreatsBiological Resource Use 1 ThreatsInvasive and Other Problematic Species, Genes and Diseases 1 ThreatsClimate Change and Severe Weather 1 Relationship to People Living or Extinct Conservation Status Body Size Band Activity Pattern Connections
Child Taxon Of
Source Clouded tiger cat (Wikipedia)
In Biome
Source Clouded tiger cat (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
Found In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Source Clouded tiger cat (Wikipedia)Distribution and habitat, ArgentinaQuote, Distribution and habitat, Argentina
through the Andes mountains to northwestern Argentina
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Source Clouded tiger cat (Wikipedia)Distribution and habitat, ColombiaQuote, Distribution and habitat, Colombia
Nearly half of the species' reported range is within Colombia.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Source Clouded tiger cat (Wikipedia)Distribution and habitat, Costa RicaQuote, Distribution and habitat, Costa Rica
distributed sparsely from the forests of Costa Rica and Panama
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Source Clouded tiger cat (Wikipedia)Distribution and habitat, PanamaQuote, Distribution and habitat, Panama
distributed sparsely from the forests of Costa Rica and Panama
Sources
1. Clouded tiger cat (Wikipedia)
Lead, living species
is a small spotted cat found in Central and South America
Lead, realm
particularly in Andean montane cloud forests from 1,500 to 3,000 metres
Diet and behavior
has a diet consisting mainly of small rodents, reptiles, and ground-dwelling birds
Diet and behavior, activity
As the species is considered nocturnal
Threats, IUCN
which currently includes the clouded tiger cat under L. tigrinus
Threats, climate
are threatened by climate change and deforestation
Threats, poaching
They are also threatened by poaching
Threats, dogs
as well as predation by and diseases from dogs
Characteristics, size
the clouded tiger cat is similarly small, with a head and body length from 41 to 54 centimetres
Distribution and habitat, Costa Rica
distributed sparsely from the forests of Costa Rica and Panama
Distribution and habitat, Panama
distributed sparsely from the forests of Costa Rica and Panama
Distribution and habitat, Argentina
through the Andes mountains to northwestern Argentina
Distribution and habitat, Colombia
Nearly half of the species' reported range is within Colombia.
Threats
They are also threatened by poaching, as well as predation by and diseases from dogs.
Child Taxon Of: Leopardus, Lead
The clouded tiger cat (Leopardus pardinoides) or clouded oncilla is a small spotted cat
Child Taxon Of: Felidae, Lead, family
is a small spotted cat found in Central and South America
In Biome: Cloud Forest, Lead, habitat
particularly in Andean montane cloud forests from 1,500 to 3,000 metres (4,900 to 9,800 ft) above sea level
In Group: Cats, Lead, group
is a small spotted cat found in Central and South America
View the Source2. Scientific Reports (PubMed Central): Ecological modeling, biogeography, and phenotypic analyses setting the tiger cats' hyperdimensional niches reveal a new species
Scientific Reports (PubMed Central)Discussion, habitat
The clouded tiger-cat is found in the vanishing cloud forests of the southern Central American and Andean ranges
Discussion, niche
all species had predominantly nocturnal activity
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