Colocolo

The Pampas cat is a little bigger than a domestic cat and has a bushier tail. Its size varies between regions, ranging in body length from 46 to 75 cm (18 to 30 in) with a 23–29 cm (9.1–11.4 in) long tail. Six variants of its pelage occur, but all have two dark lines on the cheeks:

Type 1. Reddish or dark grey with rusty-cinnamon stripes on the flanks, a cinnamon upper side of the ears with black edges and tips, four or five reddish rings on the tail (outer two are darker), dark brown stripes on the legs, black chest spots, and whitish underparts with rusty-ochraceous stripes. This type occurs in central Chile in subtropical, xerophytic forests at altitudes of up to 1,800 m (5,900 ft). Type 2A. Flanks with large, reddish-brown, rosette-shaped spots with darker borders, numerous rings on the tail (of the same colour as the flank spots), and very dark brown, almost black stripes on the legs with spots or stripes on the underparts. This type occurs in the northern Andes in the subspecies L. c. thomasi and L. c. …

The Pampas cat ranges throughout most of Argentina and Uruguay into the Gran Chaco and Cerrado of Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil, and north through the Andes mountain chain through Ecuador and possibly marginally into southwestern Colombia. It occurs in a wide range of habitats and inhabits elevations between 1,800 and 5,000 m (5,900 and 16,400 ft) in páramo, marginally also in puna grassland and locally in dry forest. Where its range overlaps with the Andean mountain cat in northwestern Argentina, it occurs at lower elevations on average. In central to northwestern Argentina, the Pampas cat is found at elevations below 1,240 m (4,070 ft) in grassland, mesophytic and dry forest, and shrubland. In southern Argentina and far southern Chile, it is found in Patagonian steppes and shrubland at altitudes below 1,100 m (3,600 ft). In 2016, it was recorded for the first time in the Sechura Desert and in the dry forest of northwestern Peru.

Little is known about the Pampas cat's hunting and breeding habits. It is thought to prey mainly on small mammals and birds. Guinea pigs are thought to form a large part of its diet, along with viscachas, other rodents, and the ground-dwelling tinamou order of birds. Though some have suggested it is chiefly nocturnal, others suggest it is mainly diurnal. Litters are relatively small, usually consisting of only one or two kittens, and occasionally three. The kittens weigh around 130 g (4.6 oz) at birth. The average lifespan is nine years, but some have lived for over 16 years.