THE CIVETS 141 



CIVET (Viverra civetta). 

 Coloured Plate VIII. Fig. i. 



This animal, a native, of tropical Africa, and especially 

 common in Abyssinia, is generally known as the Civet Cat. 

 It varies considerably in size, but averages two to three feet 

 in length without the fairly long tail ; the height is from ten 

 to twelve inches. In colour it is yellowish-grey, marked 

 by dark blotches and broken dark streaks ; the tail is darkly 

 ringed, the bands getting fainter towards the tip. The 

 Civet of India (Viverra zibetha), Southern China, and parts 

 of Malaysia is a slightly bigger animal, with stripes replacing 



SKELETON OF THE CIVET. 

 (One-tenth natural size.) 



the spots, and the tail is marked by only five or six broad 

 bands of white. 



In habits the two animals are very similar, hiding in 

 woods or thick grass during the day, wandering into the 

 open at night, when they explore the neighbourhood of 

 habitations. They are very destructive to small mammals 

 and birds, preying upon fowls and ducks whenever 

 opportunity offers, but also feeding on snakes, frogs, 

 insects, eggs, roots and fruits. 



The Civet, of either species, when captured, is placed in 

 a cage too small to allow it to turn round, and two or three 

 times a week the secretion is removed from the scent glands 

 with a spoon. At Enfras, in Abyssinia, multitudes of Civets 

 were kept in captivity for the purpose of supplying the 

 markets with material for use in perfumery ; Buffon states 

 that the Dutch also kept large numbers of the animals. 



