Photography is at the heart of remarkable discovery of a new cat species – even if it was science that delivered the definitive proof

You’ve probably heard the global news that a new species of cat has been discovered, something that hasn’t happened for over a century. And while it took years for the little feline to be officially recognized in a published paper in Current Biology, not to mention state-of-the-art genomics, it’s nice to know that photography still had a huge role to play in the investigation.

In fact, if it wasn’t for photography, this new Bolivian species Leopardus tilcayo might still be undiscovered. While science certainly played its part, photography is threaded throughout this rather bushy little tale.

Biologist and National Geographic Explorer Paola Nogales-Ascarrunz was quoted by National Geographic as taking “a hundred pictures,” when first encountering the wild cat in question at a sanctuary in Bolivia, and later using a photograph of another wild cat from a guidebook to discover that the new specimen’s markings were unique. From 19th-century scientific illustrations to Paola’s initial photographs of the little tiger cat, imaging always has and continues to be a key component of zoology.

The camera trap

But photography isn’t the be-all and end-all. Digital Camera World publishes a lot of stories about photography’s role in both wildlife and marine life research and conservation, but photography can’t always produce the evidence researchers need, which is where scientific processes such as genomics come in.

Nogales-Ascarrunz et al.’s paper highlights the limitations of photography in relation to identifying wild cats, specifically camera traps, explaining: “Prevalent misidentification highlights a key limitation of camera trapping methods”.

But I certainly don’t take that to mean that camera traps are useless. Camera traps are particularly useful at capturing elusive animals in hard-to-access areas or areas that might be entirely off limits for parts of the year. If you’re interested in how professionals use camera traps to document wildlife, I highly recommend watching The Wild Ones on Apple TV+. This series follows a trio of specialists, including camera trap expert Declan Burley, in search of some of the world’s most elusive species. The program goes into great detail about Declan’s methods for maximizing camera traps.

Cameras for wildlife enthusiasts

If you’re a wildlife enthusiast first and a photographer second, the cameras that I always recommend are bridge cameras like the Nikon Coolpix P1100 and Sony RX10 V. These all-in-one cameras look like serious DSLR or mirrorless cameras, but have fixed lenses. The Nikon Coolpix P1100 grants you a monstrous 35mm equivalent focal length of 24-3000mm, while the Sony RX10 V packs 24-600mm. While the Nikon wins on reach, the Sony wins on image quality and autofocus.