Various small felines inhabit our country, including Geoffroy’s cat, the Southern Pampas cat, and the güiña (or kodkod). Unfortunately, there is little information known about these species, making it more difficult to create strategic conservation plans. With the goal of improving our knowledge, we are carrying out ecological and wildlife evaluations of these species, particularly in Pumalín Douglas Tompkins National Park and Patagonia National Park. These efforts include monitoring focused on the habitat, distribution, population health, and genetic status of these cats, information that will help us improve our small feline conservation and handling.
As part of these initiatives, we plan to install camera traps, and––once we’ve identified high-density areas––plan to use live capturing and GPS/VHF collars to monitor the felines’ routines, ranges, and habitats.
Species characteristics
Güiña
Of all the neotropical cats, the güiña is the smallest in South America and one of the smallest in the world, weighing an average of 4 to 5.5 pounds. It is a solitary animal with nocturnal habits, and frequently spends much of its time in the trees.
Two subspecies have been identified. The first is the Leopardus guigna trigillo, an endemic species found between Coquimbo and Biobio, where it dwells in bushy Mediterranean forests and sclerophyllous forests, and typically has both a lighter coat and a larger body size. The second is the Leopardus guigna guigna, found between the Araucancía and Aysén regions, and also in Argentina.
The güiña is very similar to Geoffroy’s cat, leading to the two sometimes being confused. Nevertheless, there are marked differences. The güiña’s face is smaller, and its tail is thicker and shorter (a quarter of the güiña’s total body length, as opposed to a third in the case of Geoffroy’s cat). Additionally, the species do not occupy the same habitat: Geoffroy’s cat is found in more open environments, and its distribution in Chile is limited to the Patagonic areas of Aysén and Magallanes.
The güiña has one of the most restricted geographic distributions of any feline in the world, given that it is found only in Chile and Argentina. In Chile, its habitat ranges from Coquimbo to the south of Cochrane (Aysén). It mostly dwells in forests and higher-density bushy areas, which provide better coverage.
Geoffroy’s cat
Geoffroy’s cat is a medium-sized feline weighing 6.5 to 11 pounds. It is generally a yellowish-gray, with a large number of small specks or black spots on its flanks, which join together in lines along the neck and extremities. Its tail, which has a series of narrow black rings, is moderately long––generally a third of the feline’s total length. The cat is a skilled climber, resting in trees or other dense vegetation during the day. It is also an excellent swimmer.
The species’ range includes Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, eastern Bolivia, and southern Brazil and Chile. In Chile, it has been found in transitional zones between the forest and Patagonian steppe at up to 3,200 feet above sea level in the Araucanía, Aysén, and Magallanes regions. The feline generally lives in dense shrub, scrubland and herbaceous Patagonian steppe, pampas grasslands, dry forests, and, to a lesser extent, temperate Nothofagus forests.
Southern Pampas cat
The Leopardus pajeros is a small feline: it weighs 3 to 6 kg and measures 52 to 70 cm in body length. Its tail is 29 to 32 cm long. Until recently, it was considered a subspecies of Leopardus colocolo. However, research on the Colocolo and Pampas cat’s taxonomy by Nascimento et al. (2020) established that the Southern Pampas cat (Leopardus pajeros) is a monotypic species, meaning its unique in its type.
The Southern Pampas cat is widely distributed in meridional South America, from the pampas south of Buenos Aires to southern Argentina, passing through Aysén and reaching the Strait of Magellan. In southern Chile, its habitat is especially associated with Patagonian steppe environments. With solitary, terrestrial habits, preferably crepuscular and nocturnal, this small feline feeds mainly on rodents, birds, and hares, among other prey.
Brown, gray and dark yellow shades predominate their fur. They generally have a uniform gray coloration, a gray dorsal coat with some lateral spots that sometimes go unnoticed. Their fur is longer and darker on their backs, between the shoulders, and on their tail’s base. In addition, it has some darker transverse lines on its extremities, while its tail is grayish brown without rings or spots.
