High in the Andes Mountains where no trees grow, among the windswept rocks and twisted shrubs, lurks the Andean Mountain Cat. It has approximately the same mass as a domestic cat but appears larger thanks to the long, bushy tail that it wraps around itself to keep warm. Little more is known about the the Andean Mountain Cat because it is rarely seen and scantily documented. It is not even known whether its population has been reduced by human pressures or whether it has always been scarce. The main threat to it today is thought to be hunting. Although cats are worshipped by the local Indians, they express their devotion by killing the animals and dancing ceremonially with the stuffed carcasses.

Apart from the Wikipedia entry, you can learn more about the Andean Mountain Cat through the Andean Cat Alliance. Another organization working to conserve this rare creature is the Small Cat Conservation Alliance. Check out their Andean Cat Project and, if you can stand it, see what a “decorated” cat looks like. The International Society for Endangered Cats has a concise description of the cat and explains why we know so little about it. The University of Michigan Museum of Zoology gives general information about the cat along with its scientific classification. If you want to dig deep into the ecology of the Andean Mountain Cat, see the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s survey of the latest research.