MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Endangered Andean cat sighted in Argentine province of Neuquén

The Andean cat inhabits the highlands of the Andes and elevations of the Patagonian steppe in Argentina

The environmental organization WCS Argentina Friday reported having sighted a rare cat near the city of Loncopué in the Argentine province of Neuquén.

The feat was achieved through a monitoring system with “camera traps” with motion sensors in places where the species is believed to live and wander. With this deployment, it was possible to identify the nocturnal passage of a solitary Andean cat, it was explained.

“After several years of work to record it, which had been reported by a local producer, we confirmed the presence of this species which, given its endangered status, has few individuals throughout its distribution range,” said WCS Argentina Regenerative Management head María José Bolgeri.

“Every new data surveyed is important, giving hope and increasing the commitment for its long-term conservation,” she added.

The Andean cat is a species considered endangered and inhabits the highlands of the Andes and elevations of the Patagonian steppe in Argentina.

The finding is said to be highly significant for scientific research and the conservation of the species because it was the first confirmed record in the western area of Neuquén which extends the animal's geographic distribution in Argentine Patagonia.

According to current studies, the Patagonian population of the Andean cat would begin in Malargüe, south of the province of Mendoza, and reach Chihuidos to the south, and Loncopué to the west.

WCS Argentina also noted that the Patagonian population of the Andean cat has been geographically isolated from the rest of the populations of the species - distributed in Andean and Puna areas in Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina, due to which it could be a different genetic unit.

The genetic diversity of a species, as well as its geographic distribution, is fundamental for designing preservation strategies, the organization also pointed out.

The Andean cat is one of the most endangered felines in the world, with an estimated 1,500 individuals left. One of the main reasons for it to be nearing extinction is hunting to avoid livestock predation, it was explained.