Researchers from the international environmental defense organization Greenpeace made an unprecedented sighting of an Andean cat in the hills surrounding Santiago, a rare, very elusive specimen, considered one of the five most endangered felines in the world and currently in danger of extinction.
As explained to EFE the organization, the unexpected registration of the call «ghost of the Andes», of which it is believed to exist only 1,400 copies in the world, was produced thanks to a series of camouflaged camera traps by Greenpeace and the Andean Cat Alliance (AGA) in the Yerba Loca Natural Park, in the eastern commune of Lo Barnechea.
«They live in areas with very difficult access and it is a feline with nocturnal habits. It is a species adapted to certain habitats, which has evolved over thousands of years to live in very cold and high conditions, between 2,000 and 5,000 meters above sea levelareas of extreme winds in summer,» he told EFE Greenpeace biodiversity specialist, Dominique Charlin.
«It is so specialized that any disturbance or contamination in its territory makes it very vulnerable»he adds.
«This is a record of tremendous relevance, since it allows us, on the one hand, to learn more about the nature and habits of the feline in the central zone and, on the other, because it forces us to generate more and better conditions to ensure its survival in the sector (…) It is a species highly threatened by human activities such as mining, because this activity is located in the same places where the Andean cat lives,» highlighted the specialist.
LAST SIGHTING IN 2014
He Leopardus Jacobite -scientific name of the Andean cat- inhabits the mountainous regions of Chile, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina, and it is an extremely elusive feline: until 2014, the date on which a lucky hiker had made the last sighting, it was believed to be extinct in the central area of Chile.
According to Charlin, various studies carried out by Greenpeace and AGA suggested that this area, close to the Farellones ski slopes, could be home to a specimen like the one seen. «a reproductive male in good condition», which is why it was decided to disseminate the cameras.
«We had suspicions that the species lived in the area, since the environment of the sanctuary, due to its rocky areas similar to those of our previous records, seemed favorable to detect its presence. Furthermore, because the site has an abundance of prey, such as vizcachas, its favorite food,» noted the master’s degree in Wilderness and Nature Conservation and member of the AGA, Bernardo Segura.
This particular territory, according to multiple civil organizations, is threatened by the expansion of the Los Bronces Integrado mining companya project that seeks to expand with underground work under the Yerba Local Nature Sanctuary, right where this discovery was made.
In this context, Greenpeace is carrying out a campaign to stop this expansion and protect, among others, this species that is on the «Red List» of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as being in danger of extinction.
Chile has «a priority biodiversity area» for global conservation that has a high concentration of endemic species and has been strongly affected by human action, which goes from the Pacific to the Andes Mountains, including the central north and center of the country.
#WorldBiodiversityDay | Sign at https://t.co/bDZoJcRWUs to say NO to the advancement of the Los Bronces Integrated mining project 🚫. For him #AndeanCatthe most endangered feline in #America 🚨😿
📣 Let’s raise our voices, #Let’sLowerTheBronces
📸 Bernardo Segura pic.twitter.com/H5JDUjtrMj
— Greenpeace Chile (@GreenpeaceCL) May 22, 2024