Learn more about the Andean cat–Wildlife Conservation Network

Andean cats live high in South America's Andes Mountains.

This small, sturdy cat is difficult to find—there have been only ten recorded sightings in 25 years.

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The Andean cat is one of the rarest and least-known cats in the world.

The Andean cat is one of the rarest and least-known cats in the world. It lives high in the Andes Mountains and Patagonian steppe, where food is scarce and weather conditions are extreme. Being so rare, there have been very few sightings, even when these have increased in recent years because of AGA’s work. With less than 1,400 adult cats remaining in the wild, this is a highly endangered species.

The Andean Cat Alliance (Alianza Gato Andino, or “AGA”), which operates across Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru, the countries where the cat lives, has risen to this challenge. Members of AGA devote their time and energy to saving an animal that most of them may never be able to see. Habitat loss and degradation due to mining, water extraction, unregulated tourism, and inappropriate livestock farming and agricultural practices threaten the cat, as does hunting. These factors are further exacerbated by the effects of climate change. AGA’s programs aim to secure the future of Andean cats and their habitat by directly addressing these immediate threats, while also helping communities improve their quality of life.

AGA was the first to capture and radio collar an Andean cat and uses its increasing knowledge of the cat for conservation education and the growth of protected areas.

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How do you protect a species you don't see?

Dr. Rocio Palacios of Andean Cat Alliance (AGA) tells TV network, HITN, how AGA is saving the rare and elusive "ghost of the Andes".

Most AGA staff members have never laid eyes on an Andean cat—it is so scarce and elusive that it is almost a ghost. The Andean cat represents all that is wild in the Andes, and by conserving it we are preserving one of earth's last wild places, the expansive high-altitude Andean mountain habitat.

Dr. Rocio Palacios

Dr. Rocio Palacios, General Coordinator

Rocio has had an affinity with cats since she was a young child growing up in Argentina. She spent her childhood fostering stray rescues. When she was twelve she hid a particularly smelly stray kitten named Fleas from her parents in her bedroom. As an adult, her studies in biology led her to many roles within the conservation space, particularly with studies regarding different carnivore species. These roles included working for the Argentinean National Parks Administration, conducting biological research for universities, and working with conservation NGOs.

She began working with the Andean Cat Alliance in 2003 and in 2015 was elected to serve as the Co-General Coordinator of the Alliance, where she works closely with AGA’s Argentinean, Chilean, Bolivian, and Peruvian teams. AGA’s research, conservation, and education programs aim to have long lasting impactful effects on Andean cat conservation.

Rocio feels lucky, because she saw a glimpse of an Andean cat in the wild… when she was eight months pregnant and conducting a one month field expedition with her team. Her tireless and passionate advocacy for the Andean cat gives us hope for this species’ future.

Conservation Solutions

Boosting Local Economies

Guiding Policy

Conflict Mitigation

AGA’s Conflict Mitigation Program aims to eliminate retaliatory hunting of Andean cats by reducing conflict between herders and carnivores, such as culpeo foxes and pumas, that prey on cattle. By providing livestock guard dogs, deterrent lights, and livestock corrals, AGA reduces these incidents and improves the community’s awareness about the relevance of the conservation of the Andean cat.

In the Field 24/7

AGA’s “In the Field 24/7” program uses non-invasive research methods, such as camera trapping and scat sampling, to fill information gaps about the global distribution, behavior, and health of the elusive Andean cat. These methods create the equivalent of having researchers in the field 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, collecting information that allows AGA to develop adequate monitoring and conservation strategies.

Modular Education Program

AGA’s education program increases the knowledge and raises awareness about the relevance of the Andean cat and its environment among local communities. The curriculum and activities are adaptable to different audiences, from elementary school students to technical staff of governmental agencies. This modular program allows AGA to be versatile when delivering the conservation message.

CATcrafts

AGA works with women artisans to identify traditional techniques and raw materials that can be sold globally in fair trade markets. This program empowers women and generates alternative income for their families, all while protecting and celebrating the cultural identity of those who live with the Andean cat.

CATcrafts

AGA’s CATcrafts Program aims to preserve the habitat of the Andean cat through the development of sustainable economic alternatives for local communities to reduce pressure on their natural resources. This solution has created an economic value for the Andean cat’s protection, its cultural significance, and transforms the artisans into ambassadors.

Green Gold

Through their “Green Gold” certification program, AGA helps Andean communities, whose main source of income is the extraction of gold, to advance mining regulations, improving the industry’s impacts on water, soil, miners’ health, and the habitat for Andean cats. This certification increases income for local communities, and ensures materials are extracted using sustainable techniques.

Reducing Conflict

Conflict Mitigation

AGA’s Conflict Mitigation Program aims to eliminate retaliatory hunting of Andean cats by reducing conflict between herders and carnivores, such as culpeo foxes and pumas, that prey on cattle. By providing livestock guard dogs, deterrent lights, and livestock corrals, AGA reduces these incidents and improves the community’s awareness about the relevance of the conservation of the Andean cat.

Scientific Research

In the Field 24/7

AGA’s “In the Field 24/7” program uses non-invasive research methods, such as camera trapping and scat sampling, to fill information gaps about the global distribution, behavior, and health of the elusive Andean cat. These methods create the equivalent of having researchers in the field 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, collecting information that allows AGA to develop adequate monitoring and conservation strategies.

Expanding Education

Modular Education Program

AGA’s education program increases the knowledge and raises awareness about the relevance of the Andean cat and its environment among local communities. The curriculum and activities are adaptable to different audiences, from elementary school students to technical staff of governmental agencies. This modular program allows AGA to be versatile when delivering the conservation message.

Empowering Women

CATcrafts

AGA works with women artisans to identify traditional techniques and raw materials that can be sold globally in fair trade markets. This program empowers women and generates alternative income for their families, all while protecting and celebrating the cultural identity of those who live with the Andean cat.

Boosting Local Economies

CATcrafts

AGA’s CATcrafts Program aims to preserve the habitat of the Andean cat through the development of sustainable economic alternatives for local communities to reduce pressure on their natural resources. This solution has created an economic value for the Andean cat’s protection, its cultural significance, and transforms the artisans into ambassadors.

Guiding Policy

Green Gold

Through their “Green Gold” certification program, AGA helps Andean communities, whose main source of income is the extraction of gold, to advance mining regulations, improving the industry’s impacts on water, soil, miners’ health, and the habitat for Andean cats. This certification increases income for local communities, and ensures materials are extracted using sustainable techniques.

Impact by the Numbers

122k

acres of Andean cat habitat protected

through AGA's livestock guarding dog program, which employs 10 guard dogs and promotes coexistence through reducing retaliatory killings of Andean cats

61

locals employed in 2022

including women from local communities who have participated in Andean cat handicraft program

146

children provided with conservation education programs by AGA in 2022

Where Your Money Goes

$65 buys one luminous (predator) deterrent, an effective device that prevents carnivore attacks on livestock.

$200 buys one camera trap, an essential tool to monitor the elusive Andean cat.

$900 supports the Genetics Project—a program that maps the distribution of Andean cats in its home range countries, highlighting areas impacted by climate change that may need conservation interventions— for one year in one country.

$1,500 enables AGA to hold a three-day community workshop for women to teach them how to design high-quality crafts that they can then sell as a source of income.

Watch Expo Presentation by Dr. Rocio Palacios

The Andean Cat Alliance operates across Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru to save the elusive and rare Andean cat, an animal that most of them will never see. Andean cats face many threats, including habitat loss and degradation due to mining, unregulated tourism, and agricultural practices.

News & Stories

Advancing Conservation With a Single Photo

The wind howled and the sky was awash with orange and violet as Dr. Rocío Palacios, Executive Director of Andean... Learn More

The Secret to Finding Andean Cats

The wind whipped through Cintia Tellaeche’s hair as she crouched to reach the camera trap fastened to a post. She... Learn More

An Andean Cat's Best Friend

Rodrigo Villalobos got the call early in the morning. In the cold summer night, Adrián Muñoz, a goat farmer living... Learn More

Meet 2019 WCN Scholar Juan Carlos Huaranca

Juan Carlos Huaranca hears the clatter of rocks slipping beneath his hiking boots as he ascends the Bolivian Andes in... Learn More

What They Don't Teach You In Science Class

When I studied environmental science at university, we learned about biodiversity, species competition, habitat degradation, population dynamics, invasive species, and... Learn More

Learning About a Cat You Don't See

The vizcacha, a small, beige rodent, watches Constanza and her team of conservationists from Andean Cat Alliance (AGA) warily from... Learn More

Celebrating Women in Conservation

Women play an integral role in conservation, with countless pioneering female conservationists working globally to save endangered wildlife. Tomorrow, on... Learn More

Jacobo’s Road Home

In March of 2016, local residents from the town of Patacamaya, situated in the La Paz Department in Bolivia, found... Learn More

Going to India to Save the Andean Cat

Nicolás Lagos spends much of his time in the rugged Andes Mountains of Chile, where he works with the Andean Cat... Learn More

Andean Cat Alliance's Four Legged Fieldworker

Monty was a street puppy, rescued by a woman who had recently lost her dog. When she found him, Monty... Learn More

Finding the Andean Cat

The Andean cat, which lives high in the rugged Andes Mountains, is one of the rarest cats in the world.... Learn More

Life in the Field for Andean Cat Alliance, Chile

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be a conservationist out in the field? Wonder no more! WCN staff... Learn More

Using Art to Create Conservation Culture

This is part of our ongoing series about technology and conservation. Our previous installments are here and here. Sometimes the... Learn More

Wildlife on Camera- Andean Cats

In the Hall of the Mountain King- The elusive Andean cat lives high in the arid environment of the Andes Mountains... Learn More

Photography Credits: Andean Cat Alliance, Joshua Asel, Sebastian Kennerknecht, Juan Reppucci, Cristian Sepulveda, Lilian Villalba