Andean cat  (Oreailurus jacobita)

The Andean cat lives in the Andean mountain range. It is distributed over 620,000 km² in four countries, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru, and its presence is extremely sparse (4) (6).

This species is known by the locals as ‘huana titi', meaning the cat from dry places, which aptly describes its typical habitat (4). It inhabits the rocky, arid and sparsely vegetated areas of the high Andes above the tree-line, and is restricted to habitats above 4000 meters (5) (4). The climate here is cold all year long, with snow or sleet storms at any time of year. Almost all precipitation is in the form of snow, and the winds are variable and intense. Vegetation is poor and dominated by a ralo grass. There are no trees but only ground-hugging bushes (6).