Research overview: the southern tigrina, Leopardus guttulus

The recognition of the southern tigrina, Leopardus guttulus, as a species distinct from the northern tigrina, Leopardus tigrinus, is a notable recent split among Neotropical cats. This overview reviews the evidence: genetic data showed that southern Brazilian tiger cats are deeply divergent from northeastern ones and that the two do not interbreed where their ranges approach, satisfying species criteria. It discusses how the split clarified a previously confusing taxonomy in which all small spotted South American cats were lumped, and how the southern tigrina hybridizes with Geoffroy's cat rather than with its northern counterpart. The piece highlights how molecular work continues to subdivide the Leopardus radiation, revealing cryptic species and complex patterns of gene flow that morphology alone could not detect among these similar-looking cats.