Called an olinguito (Spanish for 'little olingo')...or more properly : Bassaricyon neblina this little guy is from South America. And is closely related to other members of the raccoon family (Procyonidae). While specimens were in the Field Museum for years it was only recently that it was given attention. It was assumed that these little guys were the same species as closely related Olingos (same genus). Kristofer Helgenran et al. ran DNA analyses to determine if this was indeed a 'good' species. Now known from the wild (vs. dusty drawers of museums only) this little furball has made quite a splash!
Read the paper here:
Helgen, K.M., Pinto, M., Kays, R, Helgen, L., Tsuchiya, M., Quinn, A., Wilson, D., Maldonado, J. (2013). Taxonomic revision of the olingos (Bassaricyon), with description of a new species, the Olinguito. ZooKeys 324: 1–83. doi:10.389
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| The now famous Olinguito. Let us suppose: basking in its ability to remain elusive for oh so many years.... |
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