Leopardus tilcayo

TILCAYO

The tilcayo is a species of small wild cat in the genus Leopardus native to Bolivia. Identified through a genetic study of tiger cats published in September 2026, the tilcayo is the first extant cat species formally described since 1923. The tilcayo was already known to local communities under that name. Its appearance is similar to that of other tiger cat species such as the oncilla, and its status as a genetically distinct population was not documented by zoologists until the 2026 study.