IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Gonzalez-Maya, J.F.; Arias-Alzate, A. | |
| An "update" on the small spotted cats of Colombia (Felidae: _Leopardus_ spp.): neglected charismatic species | |
| 2015 Wild Felid Monitor (Summer 2015): 19-20 | |
Currently there are eight small spotted-cats in the Neotropics which belong to the _Leopardus _genus. Three of these species are are known to exist in Colombia: the ocelot (_Leopardus pardalis_), the margay (_Leopardus wiedii_) and the oncilla (_Leopardus tigrinus_). A fourth species, the Pampas cat (_Leopardus colocolo_) may exist in the southern part of the country. This species is the only one among the endemic cat species of South America that is currently present further north in the subcontinent and probably found beyond the boundaries between Ecuador and Colombia in the Andes. In general these species are found in various habitats from tropical forests to savannahs and deserts, but the margay and the oncilla prefer closed forests at different altitudinal ranges. For Colombia, _L. pardalis _and _L. wiedii _are considered NT and _L. tigrinus _as VU, while no assessment exists for _L. colocolo._ These eight species are locally known as _tigrillos, _and, although they are recognized by local people, little is known about their ecology and natural history. Although recently numerous records have been reported and published their distribution in the country is still not well-known. |
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