# New wild cat species found in Bolivia after 103 years

> Scientists identify the Tilcayo tiger cat in the Yungas region, the first new feline species discovered since 1923.
- Title: New wild cat species found in Bolivia after 103 years
- Summary: Scientists identify the Tilcayo tiger cat in the Yungas region, the first new feline species discovered since 1923. Researchers in Bolivia have identified a…
- Keywords: leopardus tilcayo, bolivia, paola nogales-ascarrunz, yungas region, new species discovery, wild cat, national geographic, news, wild, cat, species, found
- Source: CBS News — https://cbsnews.com/news/wild-cat-species-discovered-bolivia
- Published: 2026-09-18T11:36:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: leopardus tilcayo, bolivia, paola nogales-ascarrunz, yungas region, new species discovery, wild cat, national geographic, news
## First new cat in over a century
Scientists have discovered a new wild cat species in Bolivia for the first time in more than a century, biologist Paola Nogales-Ascarrunz told AFP on Thursday.
## Meet the Tilcayo tiger cat
The Tilcayo tiger cat is a small feline with a spotted, leopard-like coat found in the mountainous Yungas region near La Paz. Locals mistook it for an ordinary house cat.
## Named after local nickname
The nickname tilcayo given to the animal by locals inspired its scientific name, Leopardus tilcayo. It is the first feline discovered since the Uruguayan pampas cat in nineteen twenty-three.
## A remarkable event, Nogales-Ascarrunz says
Paola Nogales-Ascarrunz, the National Geographic explorer who led the research, called the discovery a remarkable event because a new wild cat species has not been described in one hundred years.

> a remarkable event, because a new wild cat species hasn't been described in 100 years
## Small cat with distinctive features
The tilcayo is slightly smaller than a domestic cat, measuring around eighteen inches, with rounded ears. A pair of tilcayos have undergone whole genome sequencing for genetic testing.
## Vulnerable and at risk of extinction
Research published Thursday in Current Biology shows the species is only detected in Bolivia. Nogales-Ascarrunz said the creatures are classified as vulnerable to extinction but could soon be considered at much greater risk of dying out.
## Key takeaway

Researchers in Bolivia have identified a new wild cat species, Leopardus tilcayo, the first feline discovered in over a century.