Welcome to the Thursday edition of Wild Facts. As the snow continues to pile up in Ontario, we are going to relax in a warmer climate today. More specifically we are going to the Andean slope in northern and central Chile to find a small cat known as the Colocolo. Hmmm… I just realized that we will be climbing to an altitude of 1800 m (5900 feet) in order to find this beautiful cat. Perhaps, this isn’t going to be a nice relaxing vacation. Nonetheless, we will carry on since the Colocolo is one interesting feline.

Fashionable and Practical

Although the Colocolo is a small cat with a length between 56 and 67 cm (22 to 26″), they are quite heavy, weighing up to 3 kg (6.6 lbs). Okay, when you say it out loud, it doesn’t sound that heavy but it really is if you think about a 2 foot cat weighing over 6 lbs. I guess that heavy-set nature comes in handy when you live in high altitudes of the world’s largest continental mountain range. The Colocolo has a beautiful grey coat decorated nicely with brown stripes and spots. This coat is not just fashionable though as the long, coarse fur offers the cat protection from the environment they inhabit.

Conservation of the Colocolo

The conservation status for the Colocolo is listed at “Near Threatened”, however, this rating includes the related Pantanal Cat and the widespread Pampas Cat. Until recently, it was believed that the Pampas Cats and Pantanal Cats were the same species as the Colocolo. Studies have shown that these are actually three distinct cat species. If the Colocolo is rated on its own, they may be considered “Endangered”, however, this is just an assumption since an official rating for just the Colocolo has not be undertaken. Luckily, the habitat that this small cat inhabits is not incredibly useful to humans yet, so habitat destruction shouldn’t be a major issue for our furry, feline friend.

The Pampas Cat vs. The Penguin

Since the Colocolo was once considered to be the same species as the Pampas Cat, I figured we should learn a quick fact about this species as well. Did you know that the Pampas Cats were known to steal penguin eggs and chicks from their nests? I doubt the Colocolo does this since I really don’t think penguins are hanging out in the Andes Mountains.

That does it for today’s Wild Fact. Enjoy the ret of your day and I will see you tomorrow for the final fact of the week.