Keywords
Central America
Cloud forests
Elusive species
How to Cite
Accepted 2025-12-16
Published 2026-03-30
Abstract
We report new records of the clouded tiger cat Leopardus pardinoides oncilla from Santa Fe National Park, Panama, representing the easternmost confirmed occurrence of the species in the cordillera Talamanca. Setting camera traps between October 2024 and February 2025, we detected two individuals, one melanistic and one non-melanistic, at approximately 1700 meters above sea level, from just below the continental divide of Central America. These findings confirm the presence of undocumented populations of L. pardinoides oncilla in Central Panama and highlight the importance of protecting montane cloud forest habitat for conserving this elusive species
References
Cepeda-Duque, J. C., G. Andrade-Ponce, A. Montes-Rojas, U. Rendón-Jaramillo, V. López-Velasco, E. Arango-Correa, Á. López-Barrera, L. Mazariegos, D. D. Lizcano, A. Link, and T. G. de Oliveira. 2023. Assessing microhabitat, landscape features and intraguild relationships in the occupancy of the enigmatic and threatened Andean tiger cat (Leopardus tigrinus pardinoides) in the cloud forests of northwestern Colombia. PLOS ONE 18:e0288247. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0288247
Esser, H. J., Y. Liefting, R. Kays, and P. A. Jansen. 2012. A record of Striped Hog-nosed Skunk Conepatus semistriatus in central Panama, between two known sub-ranges. Small Carnivore Conservation 47:62–64.
González-Maya, J. F., and J. Schipper. 2008. A High-elevation Report of Oncilla in Mesoamerica. CAT News 49:33.
Méndez-Carvajal, P., and K. Gutiérrez-Pineda. 2024. The Oncilla Leopardus tigrinus oncilla (Schreber, 1775): Reporting its Occurrence at Chucantí Private Natural Reserve, Darién, Panama. Tecnociencia 26:101–109. https://doi.org/10.48204/j.tecno.v26n2.a5404
de Oliveira, T. G., L. A. Fox-Rosales, J. D. Ramírez-Fernández, J. C. Cepeda-Duque, R. Zug, C. Sanchez-Lalinde, M. J. R. Oliveira, P. H. D. Marinho, A. Bonilla-Sánchez, M. C. Marques, K. Cassaro, R. Moreno, D. Rumiz, F. B. Peters, J. Ortega, G. Cavalcanti, M. S. Mooring, S. R. Blankenship, E. Brenes-Mora, D. Dias, F. D. Mazim, E. Eizirik, J. L. Diehl, R. V Marques, A. C. C. Ribeiro, R. A. Cruz, E. Pasa, L. P. C. Meira, A. Pereira, G. B. Ferreira, F. F. de Pinho, L. M. M. Sena, V. R. de Morais, M. Ribeiro Luiz, V. E. C. Moura, M. O. Favarini, K. P. G. Leal, P. G. C. Wagner, M. C. dos Santos, J. Sanderson, E. P. Araújo, and F. H. G. Rodrigues. 2024. Ecological modeling, biogeography, and phenotypic analyses setting the tiger cats’ hyperdimensional niches reveal a new species. Scientific Reports 14:2395. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-52379-8
Ramírez-Fernández, J. D., L. A. Fox-Rosales, M. S. Mooring, J. C. Delgado-Carazo, S. R. Blankenship, J. R. Powell, Y. Méndez, A. Acevedo-Loría, E. Brenes-Mora, J. G. Sanderson, and T. G. de Oliveira. 2024. Distribution and habitat use patterns of the endangered Central American clouded oncilla (Leopardus pardinoides oncilla) in Costa Rica. PLOS ONE 19:e0310562. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0310562
Rodgers, T. W., and K. M. Kapheim. 2017. A High-Elevation Record of the Little Spotted Cat ( Leopardus tigrinus oncilla ) from Western Panama. The Southwestern Naturalist 62:225–227. 10.1894/SWNAT-D-17-00024.1
Sosa-Bartuano, Á., M. Ponce, A. Batista, and M. Vesely. 2016. Primer registro fotográfico de Conepatus semistriatus (Carnivora: Mephitidae) en el Parque Nacional Cerro Hoya, Provincia de Veraguas, Panamá. Mammalogy Notes | Notas Mastozoológicas 3:30–32. https://doi.org/10.47603/manovol3n1.30-32
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.