Footage of elusive Andean cat captured by conservationist: 'It's incredible'

A great camera trap video of this elusive and endangered small wild cat species, about the size of a domestic cat and looking a bit like one.

I will add some more words within the next 24 hours but it is too late for me to do so right now. The video explains the salient points anyway. Such a beautiful cat. Sadly it is persecuted for ornamental and cultural reasons. I mean it is killed for the pelt. Very sad and very odd in the 21st century. Outdated mentality behind that but education is rectifying this major conservation issue. 

This is a camera trap video as you probably know. The camera is in a fixed place along a possible Andean cat trial. It is activated by movement. The conservationist got lucky and he is delighted.

Update: They've discovered the Andean cat also lives a thousand miles south of where they are known to live. The footage was captured in the Parque Mahuida nature reserve on the edge of Santiago city.

LOTS MORE ON THE ANDEAN CAT - PLEASE CLICK HERE

The guy is, I believe, Bernardo Segura. He's surprised that the Andean cat lives so near the city. It was believed that they only live in remote and extremely rocky terrain far from human settlements.

Segura believed the Andean cat could be there because there were high numbers of it favourite prey animals: mountain vizcachas. That is why he placed camera traps in the area. He lives in Santiago city. He has filmed the cat 40 times.

"So far, we have identified at least three individual adults passing continually, suggesting this is the core of their territory and not just a chance encounter" he said.

He is thrilled because he can now study the cat species without having to travel hundreds of miles and live in the field which is always more difficult. He lives within eyesight of the habitat of the Andean cat.

What is sad about this cat species is that humankind is still learning about it while at the same time exterminating it from the planet is various ways such as destroying its habitat and persecution. It'll be extinct before we get to know it. I shake my head at that thought.

I have a full page on the species which you might like to read and many other pages. Please click on the link above for those pages.

Wild Cats of South America

A list of the wildcats of South America in a spreadheet plus range map details and links to more. The wildcats are, in descending order of size: jaguar, puma, ocelot, jaguarundi, Geoffroy's cat, Andean mountain cat, margay, pampas cat and oncilla. Please go to the wild cat species page to see the wildcats of the world.



Selected associated pages:

• Jaguar photograph
• Jaguarundi photograph

Why is the Andean cat endangered?

Andean mountain cat

The reasons why the Andean cat is endangered are listed below:

• the top threat to the survival of this species is "traditional hunting". Local people consider this cat a sacred animal and stuffed Andean cats are used in festivals probably as a attempt to improve harvests.
• the probable main prey of the Andean cat, the mountain chinchilla, was hunted nearly to extinction for the fur trade. 
• the current top prey of this cat the mountain vizcachas has a fragmented range due again to being hunted by local people.
• habitat destruction through mining is another threat.
• the hunting of the Andean cat by local people to protect livestock is also a threat and
• the genetic diversity of this species is low making reproduction less viable due to poor sperm quality because of inbreeding.

In conclusion the Andean cat is endangered by the activities of people in one form or another.

Andean Cat Facts

Here are some key Andean cat facts:

The scientific name for this species of wild cat is: Oreailurus jacobitus

The Andean cat is about the size of a large domestic cat and is similar in appearance. It is essentially a tabby and white cat. The fur is long (at 40 mm on the back) and thick. The coat a pale silvery gray. The coat is spotted and striped. The markings are brownish or blackish. The tail is long and bushy and banded with about 7 dark rings.  The bands appear as brown in the photograph below. The legs have 3 rings. The undersides are white with dark spots. One scientist described this cat as being "reminiscent of the snow leopard".

Andean mountain cat - Wikimedia commons file

This cat is extremely rare and rarely photographed. Jim Sanderson PhD has photographed this cat. I believe that the only photos are by him.

The Andean mountain cat as expected lives in the high Andes a mountain range that runs along the western side of South America. Here is an Andean cat range map or Andean cat distribution map:


View Andean Mountain Cat Range 2009 in a larger map

You can click on the blue flags for more detail. This page discusses range further.

The Andean cat lives at elevations above sea level of 3 to 5,000 meters. The landscape is arid and harsh. The climate is cold. Daily temperatures are at or below 0 degrees C.

The prey of the Andean cat is usually small mammals, birds, lizards, rabbits, viscachas and rodents.

This cat is relative tame which has allowed people to closely approach it.

There are no Andean mountain cats in captivity. The conservation or survival status of the Andean cat is "Endangered" as assessed by the IUCN Red List.

It has been persecuted by local people who believe that the cat carries supernatural powers and therefore kill it to harness those powers. There are about 2,000 cats in existence (2009). Hunting of the cat is its worst threat to survival.

Read and see more on this page.