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New wild cat species discovered – with only one known living member

67 points · 19 comments · drgo

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HelloUsername · 1789736320 · focus · HN ↗
We got a new cat species before we got GTA VI
t1234s · 1789742801 · focus · HN ↗
Whoever domesticates that breed for house cats will become rich.
1. kilroy123 · 1789744533 · focus · HN ↗
  This was my first thought. Sadly, I'm sure people are actively out looking for these just for that reason.
2. pvaldes · 1789754614 · focus · HN ↗
  [delayed]
  1. rcbdev · 1789796246 · focus · HN ↗
    Never knew Bengal cats were such an issue in some countries. We had two a few years ago, they were the most adorable creatures.
    pvaldes · 1789819923 · focus · HN ↗
    [delayed]
nemomarx · 1789743042 · focus · HN ↗
> Tiger cats previously had been considered a single species, but genetic studies decades ago suggested the existence of multiple species.
So more like they identified that part of the known population was a different species just now. It'll take more effort tagging and identifying other tiger cats to see if they also belong to this particular one?
1. fckgw · 1789744428 · focus · HN ↗
  Yeah, the quirk being that the known population is just this one in the sanctuary. They haven't identified where specifically he came from or where there might be others, so for now he's a one-of-one.
2. NetMageSCW · 1789745078 · focus · HN ↗
  No, the new cat resembles a tiger cat but is distinctly different even from appearance not just DNA. It just hasn’t been seen or tested before now.
3. technothrasher · 1789749130 · focus · HN ↗
  > It'll take more effort tagging and identifying other tiger cats to see if they also belong to this particular one?
  This effort is actually already ongoing. This splashy headline that seems to have crushed it on publicity front is actually just a small piece of the research currently being done on oncillas (aka tiger cats). The word on the grapevine for the past year or so is that the oncillas are going to get divided up into between five and twelve new species.
4. pvaldes · 1789811409 · focus · HN ↗
  There are other four species of Leopardus in Bolivia if I'm not wrong, and some had several subspecies. Many tiny, highly arboreal and nocturnal so no easy at all to catch or study. This animal was raised as pet since cub so is much easier to take samples. It could be the one animal in their species, ever, as an hybrid abandoned by its mother. Many oaks and willows do that trick routinely.
  That said in 2020 there was an article proposing to split Leopardus colocolo in other 3 to 5. This article worked on the proposal, validating four new species more with L. tilcayo that was closer to L. tigrinus. National Geographic (as in other cases) embellished the history a little. Five new species of cats were disclosed, and four were described previously inside a species complex.
toolslive · 1789743321 · focus · HN ↗
There also was the Corsican wildcat[0] which briefly was a new species and now has "uncertain taxonomic status" (whatever that may mean).
[0] <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corsican_wildcat" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corsican_wildcat
pbhjpbhj · 1789747153 · focus · HN ↗
Did I miss where they said the basis on which they judged it to be a different species?
Presumably DNA differences - would have been nice to see something about that.
There's mention of wildcats interbreeding with house cats, so presumably ability to cross-breed isn't part of the "new species" calculation?
1. apetrovic · 1789747520 · focus · HN ↗
  > The small feline, about the size of a domestic moggy, went under the radar because it was confused with other wild cats that share similar spots and stripes.
  > But DNA studies show the cat is actually in a class of its own, highlighting how much remains unknown about some of the world's most elusive mammals.
2. technothrasher · 1789750618 · focus · HN ↗
  > so presumably ability to cross-breed isn't part of the "new species" calculation?
  Considering people have interbred jaguars and leopards, and then interbred the female cubs with lions to get a lijagulep, I'm not sure cross-breeding is the gold standard of speciation that gets sold as such in school.
  The greatest threat to some of these cat species (the Scottish Wildcat being a prime example) is loss of genetic differentiation through interbreeding with domestic cats.
  1. jolmg · 1789755152 · focus · HN ↗
    There's not much information on particular hybrids, but I imagine when interbreeding jaguars and leopards, there are probably barriers of fertility or longevity, like one of the sexes tending to be infertile, which is why I imagine you'd then interbreed with yet another stable species like lions.
    The point is that if you have a supposed "species" that can't sustain itself reproduction-wise and needs other species to reproduce, then it's not really a species.
    The concern here is that the so-called new cat "species" may simply be a hybrid that wouldn't be able to reproduce were there a community of its kind.
jmartrican · 1789755393 · focus · HN ↗
To me they are all just cats. I'm sure if they all got it on they would all be able to have functional offspring.
1. jjtheblunt · 1789835735 · focus · HN ↗
  not necessarily, which is interesting
  <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liger" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liger
  <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tigon" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tigon
Beijinger · 1789777874 · focus · HN ↗
Wasn't this link first in this post? <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/meet-the-first-new-cat-species-discovered-in-100-years" rel="nofollow">https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/meet-the-...
"The man took the animal home, believing it to be a domestic breed. But after about a year of living with the clearly wild animal, he realized it would be better off at a sanctuary."
Wish there would be more information.
ChrisArchitect · 1789783158 · focus · HN ↗
More discussion: <a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49744704">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49744704

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