New Bolivian cat claws its way into species list: What we meow

A new species of wildcat, discovered in Bolivia, has been formally identified after the accidental discovery of a lost kitten and nearly 10 years of painstaking research. The Leopardus tilcayo, which local people in the Bolivian Yungas, a band of cloud forest which runs along the eastern slope of the Andes, were aware of, was previously thought to be related to other wildcats in the region. A study published in Current Biology this week has announced the first new cat species to be discovered in more than 100 years. The last was the pampas cat, reported in 1923. Scientists have named the new cat Leopardus tilcayo, after the local Bolivian name for the animal.