CIVETS. 453 



l)om with theii' eyes open. Hounds and other dogs, when they come across the 

 trail of a civet, are said to leave that of any other animal tliey may be pursuing. 



The Malabar civet (F. civettlna), which replaces tlie preceding on the Malabar 

 ■coast, is a closely allied species, distinguished by the large transverse markings on 

 the sides of the body. 



The fourtli, or Burmese civet {V. megaspila), may be recognised 

 liy the black line of the back being continued down the upper surface 

 of the tail, in which the dark rings are continuous below, and at first not wider 

 than the light interspaces. The sides of the body are marked with rather large 

 and usually distinct spots, which may teml to coalesce into bands ; and the 

 terminal portion of the tail is black for a greater or lesser extent. This species 

 seems to attain larger dimensions than the Indian civet, Mr. Blanford giving the 

 total length of one example as 54^ inches, of which the tail occupied 17i inches. 

 It inhabits Burma, the Malay Peninsula, Cochin China, and the Island of Sumatra. 



The last of the hve more typical species is the Javan civet ( V. 

 tangalungn), which is closely allied to the last, but distinguished by 

 its smaller size, and the incompleteness of the dark rings on the under-side of the 

 tail. This species has been recorded fi-om Java, Sumatra, Borneo, and the 

 Philippines. According to Mi-. Wallace it also occurs in the i.slnnds of the 

 Molucca group, M-hore, liowever, it may vciy jiroljalily have been introduced by 

 the Malays, who are in the habit of carrying civets about in cages to the various 

 islands, where they are bought for their .secretion. Dr. (Juillcmard relates, on the 

 authority of a Dutch informant, that in Java a so-called " wild cat," which is very 

 probably this .species, has the curious lialjit of eating ripe cofi'ee-berries, for the 

 .sake of their fle.shy external covering. 



The last of the true civets is the rasse {V. mahteccvKiK), the 

 smallest nuanber of the group, and distinguished, as already mentioned, 

 from the others by the absence of erectile hairs along the middle of the back. As 

 shown in our figure on the next page, it is a more slightly built and sharp-nosed animal 

 than the others, with more curved and slender claws. The ground-colour of the fur 

 is some shade of brownish-grey or yellowish-brown ; upon which there are usually 

 longitudinal dark lines down the back, and also rows of spots along the sides of the 

 body. The dark rings on the tail vary from seven to nine in number. In size the 

 rasse varies from 36 to 40 inches in total length ; from 15 to 17 inches of this being 

 taken up by the tail. This small civet is found over the greater part of India, although 

 not occurring in Sind and the Punjab, and some of the adjacent poi-tions of Rajpu- 

 tana. It is also found in Ceylon, and extends ea.stward from India through A.ssam 

 to Burma and the Malay Peninsula, and thence to Southern China, Java, and some 

 ■other islands. It has been introduced into Soeotra, Madagascar, and the Comoro 

 Lslands. The rasse is said to differ from the other true civets in being a good 

 ■climber and arboreal in its habits. It is, however, found in bush-covered districts 

 rather than in thick forest ; dwelling either in holes in the ground or among rocks. 

 In confinement it is easily tamed, and feeds on such small animals as it can catch. 



The comparatively large number of true civets inhabiting India and Malaysia, 

 as contrasted with the single representative of the genus found in Africa, suggests 

 that in the later periods of the earth's history the Oriental region was the original 



