Northern tiger cat (oncilla): status, range, size and diet
A small spotted cat of Central and northern South American forests, listed as Vulnerable and now at the centre of a taxonomic shake-up.
Also known as Leopardus tigrinus, oncilla, little spotted cat, tigrina
At a glance
| Scientific name | Leopardus tigrinus |
|---|---|
| Group | Small wild cats |
| Weight | 1.8-3.5 kg |
| Length | Head and body about 38-59 cm, tail 20-42 cm |
| Known for | One of the smallest spotted cats in the Americas, now being split into several species. |
Status
| IUCN Red List category | Vulnerable |
|---|---|
| Assessed in | 2016 |
| Population estimate | Estimated at roughly 8,900 to 10,200 adult individuals |
| Estimate from | 2016 |
Where it lives
| Range | Costa Rica and Panama and across northern and central South America, including the Amazon basin and central Brazil |
|---|---|
| Habitat | Cloud forest, tropical forest, Andean highland and dry scrub, up to high elevations |
| Diet | Small mammals, birds and lizards, mostly prey under 100 g |
Main threats
- Habitat loss and fragmentation
- Persecution over poultry
- Road deaths
- Disease from free-ranging dogs
About
The northern tiger cat, usually called the oncilla, is a slim cat not much bigger than a house cat. The coat is ochre to tawny with dark open rosettes, and the tail is long and ringed. Dark individuals occur and are fairly common. It is solitary, mostly active at night and shy of people, which makes it hard to study.
Taxonomy around tiger cats is unsettled. A 2013 genetic study separated the southern animals as their own species, the southern tiger cat. In September 2026 a further study in a scientific journal described several more lineages, including a new species, the tilcayo, from Bolivian cloud forest. The Red List treatment described here predates that work, so the range and status of the northern tiger cat in the narrower sense may change when the assessments are redone.
Where it lives and what it eats
The species is recorded from Costa Rica and Panama through northern South America and the Amazon basin to central Brazil. It occupies cloud forest, lowland forest and drier Cerrado and Caatinga scrub. It is described as widespread but rare, with densities of a few animals per 100 square kilometres.
Prey is mostly small: rodents, lizards, birds and sometimes invertebrates. Ocelots take the same food and sometimes kill tiger cats, so the smaller cat is scarce where ocelots are plentiful.
Threats and conservation
Forest clearing, especially for pasture, coffee and settlements, is the main pressure, together with fragmentation that isolates small groups. The cats are also shot when they take poultry, are killed on roads, and catch diseases from free-ranging dogs. Past fur hunting added to the decline. Climate models cited by specialists suggest that suitable range could shrink sharply by 2050.
International trade is controlled under CITES Appendix I, and legal protection is uneven among range countries. The IUCN has said it will assess the newly recognised tiger cat lineages separately.
Cats and people
Tiger cats are sometimes sold in local pet markets and are poor candidates for life in a home. Some zoos in South America keep them. Conflict with farmers is usually small in scale but adds up, because each loss is hard for such a thinly spread species to replace.
Profile last reviewed November 7, 2026