Leopardus guigna
kodkod

Oncifelis guigna, also known as kodkod or guigna, is found in central and southern Chile and Argentina. (Alderton 1993, Cat Specialist Group, 1996).

Guignas inhabit the moist temperate forests of the southern Andean and coastal ranges of Chile and Argentina. They occur to the treeline which ranges from 1900 to 2500 meters altitude. Most kokods have been recorded from the temperate moist Araucarian and Valdivian forests. Valdivian forests are characterized by a multi-layered structure with a bamboo understory and an abundance of epiphytes and lianas. Guignas also seem to be tolerant of disturbed habitats, they have been captured in settled and cultivated areas and in secondary forest and shrub. Guignas are most common on Chiloe and Guaitecas islands (Cat Specialist Group, 1996).

Guignas are small felids measuring 58.5 cm to 68 cm in length, including the tail. They are the smallest cat species in the western hemisphere. They are buff or grey brown in color. Kodkods are marked with round blackish spots on upper and lower parts, with some black streaking on the head and shoulders. The tail is narrowly ringed with black color and the backs of the ears are black with white spots (Alderton 1993). There is a high incidence of melanism, which seems to increase with latitude. Guignas may be a subspecies of Geoffroy's cat, Oncifelis geoffroyi.

Guignas are nocturnal and highly arboreal, taking to the trees when pursued and to rest. It has been suggested that they are social and live in packs but there is no evidence for this assertion (Guggisberg 1975).

Little is known about their prey, but guignas are known to eat small mammals and birds. There is at least one report of this species raiding chicken-houses in groups, but this is not verified and is considered unlikely to be common by some experts (Sanderson 1996).

Effects unknown.

Due to the small size of this species, they have little commercial value, though they are killed, and their pelts collected, incidentally by fox trappers (Sanderson 1996, Cat Specialist Group, 1996). It is likely that they act to control the populations of rodents and other small mammals.

Guignas were once common but habitat loss has led to population declines, particularly in the northern areas of their range where human populations are highest. Populations in the southern parts of their range may be protected because these areas are heavily forested and sparsely populated. These cats may continue to thrive in areas of altered habitat such as pine and eucalyptus plantations, however, if prey populations continue to do well (Cat Specialist Group, 1996).

This felid has never been studied in the wild. A single male exists in captivity in a zoo in Santiago, Chile (Sanderson 1996).

The name kodkod may have originally referred to the pampas cat, O. colocolo. This cat is most commonly called guigna in Chile and Argentina (Cat Specialist Group, 1996).