New Mammal Species Discovered: Olinguito Been In Public Eye Since 1970s, Mistaken As A Sister Species

New mammal species discovered: It's a raccoon-sized critter with teddy bear looks, according to researcher that announced thediscovery called olinguito.

It belongs to a grouping of large creatures that include dogs, cats and bears, according to FOX News. The new mammal species discovered was actually in the public's eye for a while, but mistaken to be something else.

An olinguito was living at the Smithsonian-run National Zoo in Washington for a yea though its identity was mistaken to be a sister species of the olinguito. The new mammal species discovered was really discovered decades ago.

The critter named Ringerl, was shipped from zoo to zoo from 1967 to 1976: Louisville, Ky., Tucson, Ariz., Salt Lake City, Washington and New York City to try to get it to breed with other olingos. Little did they know it was indeed an olinguito.

"It's been kind of hiding in plain sight for a long time" despite its extraordinary beauty, Kristofer Helgen, the Smithsonian's curator of mammals told the Associated Press. "It turns out she wasn't fussy. She wasn't the right species."

Helgen first figured olinguitos were different from olingos when he was looking at pelts and skeletons in a museum. He later led a team to South America in 2006, according to the AP.

"When we went to the field we found it in the very first night," study co-author Roland Kays of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences told the AP, "It was almost like it was waiting for us."

Kays said that Olinguitos are smaller, have shorter tails, a rounder face, tinier ears and darker bushier fur, he said.

"It looks kind of like a fuzzball ... kind of like a cross between a teddy bear and a house cat," Helgen said.

It has been 35 years since a discovery of a new mammal species has been discovered.