Clouded Oncilla

The clouded tiger cat has a head shape much like the margay's, with short round ears and a long bushy tail. Its soft fur mixes red, orange, grey and yellow, with irregular, cloudy rosettes that sometimes join into bands, similar to those of the ocelot. The tail has larger black blotches in its banding. Its eyes are larger than those of other tiger cats but smaller than the margay's, and females have one pair of teats (Wikipedia, general species account; de Oliveira 2024, Plazi treatment). Although it cannot rotate its ankle joint, it has been seen climbing upside-down for short distances, which the northern and southern tiger cats do not do (Wikipedia, general species account). Melanistic animals make up 6.5% to 32% of sightings, most often in Costa Rica (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is considered nocturnal and avoids moonlit periods, so it favours prey that is active between dusk and dawn. One report suggests it uses different hours from dogs, weasels, tayras and other cats to avoid conflict (Wikipedia, general species account). Its cloud forest habitat is threatened by climate change and deforestation, and poaching, together with predation and disease from dogs, is also listed as a threat (Wikipedia, general species account). A 2024 study argued that this population should be recognised as a species, one of several proposed tiger cat species (Wikipedia, general species account; de Oliveira 2024, Plazi treatment).