THE LINSANGS 461 



will be found to differ from that of a true civet by having a narrow naked surface 

 extending for a long distance in the under surface behind the pads. Another point 

 of difference is to be found in the absence in the genets of a pouch for containing 

 the secretion ; a characteristic in which they agree with the fossa described on p. 

 454. All these animals have short and soft fur, of which the ground color is 

 brownish yellow or grayish. Down the middle of the back runs a black line, while 

 the sides of the body are marked with black or brown spots ; and there are also 

 characteristic dark and light markings on the head and face. The black rings on 

 the tail, which are variable in number, are generally narrower than the interven- 

 ing white spaces. 



As the true civets are mainly Oriental in their distribution, having only one 

 species beyond the limits of that region, so the genets are chiefly African. The 

 common genet (Genetta vulgaris*), which occurs in the northern part of Africa, is, 

 indeed, the only species found beyond that continent, its range extending into 

 Spain, the south of France, and Southeastern Asia. In 1890 a single specimen 

 was recorded from the department of Eure, in the north of France. It is definitely 

 known from Asia in Syria, but may also occur in Southeastern Persia. Of the four 

 exclusively African species, the blotched genet (G. tigrina) ranges from the Cape 

 to Abyssinia, the feline genet (G.fe/ina'), is South African, while the remaining 

 species (G. senegalensis and G. pardina) are from the West Coast. Genets are easily 

 tamed ; and in the south of Europe the common species is often kept in houses for 

 the purpose of killing rats and mice. 



THE LINSANGS 

 Genera Linsang and Poiana 



The most beautifully colored of the civet-like animals are the linsangs, of 

 which there are three nearly allied Oriental species, and a fourth from Africa. All 

 the linsangs the name would seem to be of Malayan derivation are character- 

 ized by their very long and slender bodies, the shortness of their limbs, the elonga- 

 tion of the head and neck, and the extreme length of the tail, which may exceed 

 that of the head and body together. The claws can be completely withdrawn 

 within their sheaths ; the whole of the soles of the feet are generally hairy ; and 

 there is no scent pouch. The fur is characterized by its shortness and softness, and 

 is very thick, so that the skin is almost like velvet pile. The ground color of the 

 fur is some shade of fulvous, marked with bold black spots or patches ; the long tail 

 being ringed with black. On account of their striking and handsome coloration, 

 the name of tiger-civets has been suggested for these animals. An examination 

 of the skull will show that instead of the forty teeth found in the true civets and 

 genets, they have only thirty-eight ; this diminution being due to the loss of the 

 second upper molar, so that there is but one tooth behind the flesh-tooth of the 

 upper jaw instead of the two shown in the figure on p. 454. 



They are all 'carnivorous, but it is suggested that some of them may also feed 

 on insects. The Asiatic linsangs are characterized by the large size of their spots, 



