7 6 



THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD 



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AFRICAN CIVET 



This photograph shows the finely marked fur of the specie* and the front view of the head 



killing rats. Several other 

 very similar forms are found in 

 Africa. The presence of such 

 a very Oriental-looking ani- 

 mal in Europe is something 

 of a surprise, though many 

 persons forget that our South 

 European animals are very 

 like those of Africa and the 

 East. The porcupine, which 

 is common in Italy and Spain, 

 and the lynx and Barbary ape 

 are instances. A tame genet 

 kept by an acquaintance of the 

 writer in Italy was absolutely 

 domesticated like a tame 

 mongoose. It had very pretty 



fur, gray, marbled and spotted with black, and no disagreeable odour, except a scent of musk. 



It was a most active little creature, full of curiosity, and always anxious to explore not only 



every room, but every cupboard and drawer in the house. Perhaps this was due to its keenness 



in hunting mice, a sport of which it never tired. It did not play with the mice when caught as 



a cat does, but ate them at once. 



The LINSANGS, an allied group, are met with in the East, from India to Borneo and Ja 



They are more slender than the genets, and more arboreal. Of the NEPALESE LINSANG Hodgson 



writes : " This animal is equally at home on trees and on the ground. It breeds and dwells in 



the hollows of decaying trees. It is not gregarious, and preys mainly on living animals." A 



tame female owned by him is stated to have been wonderfully docile and tractable, very sensitive 



to cold, and very fond of being petted. There is an allied West African species. 



The PALM-CIVETS and HEMIGALES still further increase this numerous tribe. Slight difife 



ences of skull, of the markings of the tail, which may only have rings on the base, and of 



foot and tail, are the naturalist's guide to their separation from the other civets ; HARDWICKE 



HEMIGALE has more zebra-like markings. Borneo, 



Africa, India, and the Himalaya all produce these 



active little carnivora ; but the typical palm-civets are 



Oriental They are sometimes known as Toddy-cats, 



because they drink the toddy from the jars fastened to 



catch the juice. The groves of cocoanut-palm are their 



favourite haunts ; but they will make a home in holes in 



the thatched roofs of houses, and even in the midst 



of cities. There are many species in the group. 



The BINTURONG is another omnivorous, tree- 



haunting animal allied to the civets; but it has a 



prehensile tail, which few other mammals of the Old 



World possess. It is a blunt-nosed, heavy animal, 



sometimes called the Bear-cat. Very little is known 



of its habits. It is found from the Eastern Himalaya 



to Java. 



The last of the Civet Family is BENNETT'S CIVET, 



the only instance of a cat-like animal with partly 



webbed feet. Found in the Malay Peninsula and in 



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SUMATRAN CIVET 



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