Asian palm civet
Species of mammal
- 6 min read
- 7 chapters
Related on Lably
Through South Asia, Habitat and India
Characteristics
The Asian palm civet's long, stocky body is covered with coarse, shaggy hair that is usually greyish in colour. It has a white mask across the forehead, a small white patch under each eye, a white spot on each side of the nostrils, and a narrow dark line between the eyes. The muzzle, ears, lower legs, and distal half of the tail are black, with three rows of black markings on the body. Its head-to-body length is about 53 cm (21 in) with a 48 cm (19 in) long unringed tail. It weighs 2 to 5 kg (4.4 to 11.0 lb). Its anal scent glands emit a nauseating secretion as a chemical defense when threatened or upset.
Sign in to keep reading
6 more chapters are free with a Lably account.
Distribution and habitat
The Asian palm civet is widely distributed in South and Southeast Asia, ranging from India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka to Myanmar, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, the Philippines, Borneo and the Indonesian islands of Sumatra, Java, Bawean and Siberut. It usually inhabits primary forests, but also occurs at lower densities in secondary and selectively logged forest.
The Asian palm civet was introduced to Irian Jaya, the Lesser Sunda Islands, Maluku, and Sulawesi. Its presence in Papua New Guinea is uncertain.
Behaviour and ecology
The Asian palm civet is thought to lead a solitary lifestyle, except for brief periods during mating. It is both terrestrial and arboreal, showing a nocturnal activity pattern with peaks between late evening until after midnight. It is usually active between dawn and 4:00 in the morning, but less active during nights when the moon is brightest.
Scent marking behaviour and olfactory response to various excretions such as urine, feces, and secretion of the perineal gland differs in males and females. Scent marking by dragging the perineal gland and leaving the secretion on the substrate was most commonly observed in animals of both sexes. The duration of the olfactory response varied and depended both on the sex and excretion type. The palm civet can distinguish animal species, sex, familiar and unfamiliar individuals by the odor of the perineal gland secretion.
Feeding and diet
The Asian palm civet is an omnivore feeding foremost on fruits such as berries and pulpy fruits. It thus helps to maintain tropical forest ecosystems via seed dispersal. It eats chiku, mango and rambutan, but also small mammals and insects. It plays an important role in the natural regeneration of Pinanga kuhlii and P. zavana palms at Gunung Gede Pangrango National Park.
Reproduction
Due to its solitary and nocturnal habits, little is known about its reproductive processes and behaviour. In March 2010, a pair of palm civets was observed when attempting to mate. The pair copulated on the tree branch for about five minutes. During that period, the male mounted the female 4–5 times. After each mounting, the pair separated for a few moments and repeated the same procedure. After completion of mating, the pair frolicked around for some time, moving from branch to branch on the tree. The animals separated after about six minutes and moved off to different branches and rested there.
Threats
Since 2008, the Asian palm civet is IUCN Red Listed as Least Concern. The global population was thought to be large and unlikely to be declining as of 2008. It is threatened by hunting and trapping, in particular in southern China; in some parts of India, some ethnic tribes kill and consume its meat. The oil extracted from small pieces of the meat, kept in linseed oil in a closed earthen pot and regularly sunned, is used indigenously as a cure for scabies.
In Indonesia, it is threatened by poaching and the illegal wildlife trade; buyers use it for the production of kopi luwak made from coffee beans digested and excreted by Asian palm civets. They are housed in battery cage systems, which have been criticised on animal welfare grounds.
In some parts of its range, Asian palm civets are hunted for bushmeat and the pet trade.
Conservation
The Asian palm civet is listed on CITES Appendix III. There is a quota in place in Indonesia, precluding trade from certain areas, setting a cap on the number of civets that can be taken from the wild, and allowing only 10% of those removed from the wild to be sold domestically. This quota is largely ignored by hunters and traders and is not enforced by authorities. This species has become popular as a pet in Indonesia in recent years, causing a rise in the numbers found in markets in Java and Bali. The majority of the animals sold as pets originate from the wild. The high numbers of animals seen, lack of adherence to the quota and lack of enforcement of the laws are causes for conservation concern.
Taxonomy and evolution
Viverra hermaphrodita was the scientific name proposed by Peter Simon Pallas in 1777. It is the nominate subspecies and ranges in Sri Lanka and southern India as far north as the Narbada River. Several zoological specimens were described between 1820 and 1992:
- Viverra bondar by Anselme Gaëtan Desmarest in 1820 was a specimen from Bengal
- Viverra musanga by Stamford Raffles in 1821 was a specimen from Sumatra
- Viverra musanga, var. javanica by Thomas Horsfield in 1824 was a specimen from Java
- Paradoxurus pallasii by John Edward Gray in 1832 was a specimen from India
- Paradoxurus philippinensis by Claude Jourdan in 1837 was a specimen from the Philippines However, a genetic study in 2015 reclassifies it as a separate species.
- P. h. setosus by Honoré Jacquinot and Pucheran in 1853
- P. h. nictitans by Taylor in 1891 was a specimen from Odisha;
- P. h. lignicolor by Gerrit Smith Miller Jr. in 1903
- P. h. minor by John Lewis Bonhote in 1903
- P. h. canescens by Lyon in 1907
- P. h. milleri by Cecil Boden Kloss in 1908
- P. h. kangeanus by Oldfield Thomas in 1910
- P. h. sumbanus by Ernst Schwarz in 1910
- P. h. exitus by Schwarz in 1911
- P. h. cochinensis by Schwarz, 1911
- P. h. canus (Miller, 1913)
- P. h. pallens (Miller, 1913)
- P. h. parvus (Miller, 1913)
- P. h. pugnax (Miller, 1913)
- P. h. pulcher (Miller, 1913)
- P. h. sacer (Miller, 1913)
- P. h. senex (Miller, 1913)
- P. h. simplex (Miller, 1913)
- P. h. enganus by Lyon, 1916
- P. h. laotum by Nils Carl Gustaf Fersen Gyldenstolpe in 1917 was a specimen from Chieng Hai in north-western Thailand, and ranges from Myanmar to Indochina and Hainan;
- P. h. balicus by Sody in 1933 was a specimen from Bali
- P. h. scindiae by Pocock in 1934 was a specimen from Gwalior, and ranges in central India;
- P. h. vellerosus by Pocock in 1934 was a specimen from Kashmir;
- P. h. dongfangensis by Corbet and Hill in 1992
The taxonomic status of these subspecies has not yet been evaluated.
Evolution
Palawan and Borneo specimens are genetically close, so the Asian palm civet on Palawan island might have dispersed from Borneo during the Pleistocene. It is possible that people later introduced Asian palm civet into other Philippines islands.
In culture
In Philippine mythology, the Bagobo people believe a being named Lakivot was said to be a huge and powerful palm civet who can talk. Lakivot defeated various monsters, including the one-eyed monster Ogassi and the busaw beings who guarded the Tree of Gold, which had the Flower of Gold that he sought. He was eventually transformed into a handsome young man, and married the person to whom he gave the Flower of Gold. The Philippine twenty-peso note currently features the Asian palm civet on the reverse side.