Savanna Oncilla

The oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus), also known as the northern tiger cat, little spotted cat, and tigrillo, is a small spotted cat ranging from Central America to central Brazil. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, and the population is threatened by deforestation and conversion of habitat to agricultural land.

In 2013, it was proposed to assign the oncilla populations in southern Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina to a new species, the southern tiger cat (L. guttulus), after it was found that it does not interbreed with the oncilla population in northeastern Brazil. In 2024, a similar argument was put forth with regards to the Andean montane cloud forest sub-population; for a third species to be recognized, now known as the clouded tiger cat (L. pardinoides). In 2026, a genetic analysis of Leopardus species in South America proposed that the L. tigrinus complex comprised five species, adding the tilcayo (L. tilcayo).

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