viverrid
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GC: n

S: AZA – https://assets.speakcdn.com/assets/2332/viverridcaremanual2010ar.pdf (last access: 12 May 2025); WildWelfare – https://wildwelfare.org/first-viverrid-workshop-uk/ (last access: 12 May 2025).

N: 1. The first known use of viverrid was in 1902. New Latin Viverridae, from Viverra, type genus, from Latin viverra ferret; akin to Old English ācweorna squirrel, Lithuanian voverė.

2. viverrid. Also known as: Viverridae.

  • viverrid, (family Viverridae), any of 35 species of small Old World mammals including civets, genets, and linsangs. Viverrids are among the most poorly known carnivores. They are rarely encountered, being small and secretive inhabitants of forests and dense vegetation. In addition, many species live only on islands or in small areas.

  • Most viverrids have slender bodies with a long tail and short legs terminating in four- or five-toed feet. The neck and head are typically elongated, with a tapered muzzle and small ears. Most species have anal scent glands. Some viverrids are nocturnal, some diurnal. Many bear two annual litters of two to four young. Life expectancy ranges from 5 to 15 years.

3. Viverrid diversity

  • The smallest member of the viverrid family is the spotted linsang (Prionodon pardicolor), which weighs 0.6 kg (1.3 pounds). The two largest species are the African civet (Civettictis civetta) and the fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox) of Madagascar, both of which can reach 20 kg. The most common viverrid, however, is the European genet (Genetta genetta), which weighs 1–2.5 kg. It is found in Spain, Portugal, France, Saudi Arabia, and Israel and throughout the savannas of Central Africa as well as most of Southern Africa.

  • Most viverrids are good climbers. Some, such as the fossa and the binturong (Arctictis binturong), spend most of their lives in trees, as do several palm civets, such as the masked palm civet (Paguma larvata) and the golden palm civet (Paradoxurus zeylonensis). Many are good swimmers, and two species, the aquatic genet (Osbornictis piscivora) and the otter civet (Cynogale bennettii), are semiaquatic. Viverrids are mostly carnivorous, their diet consisting of small rodents such as mice and voles, birds and their eggs, reptiles, amphibians, fruits, nuts, and insects. Some, such as palm civets, eat mostly fruit; their frugivorous habit is reflected in the molars, which are larger and flatter than those of carnivourous viverrids.

  • Viverrids rely heavily on scent for communication. In civets, perineal glands produce a secretion that is stored in a pouch and used for scent marking. Although the secretions of most civets are strong and disagreeable, those of African civets (Civettictis civetta) are musky and have a pleasant odour. These secretions and those of the Oriental civets (genera Viverricula and Viverra) are used in the perfume industry, and captured civets are kept specifically for the production of “civet musk.” For this reason the African civet is probably the most economically important viverrid.

4. Paleontology; Mammals: viverridae.

  • Civets and mongooses: small carnivorous mammals with long bodies and heads, in many respects intermediate between the cat and the dog families. They are found in most parts of the Old World but not in Australasia nor in any part of America.

5. meerkat, (Suricata suricatta), burrowing member of the mongoose family (Herpestidae), found in southwestern Africa, that is unmistakably recognizable in its upright “sentinel” posture as it watches for predators.

Meerkats and the other mongooses are classified in their own family, Herpestidae. They were formerly included within Viverridae, a very old carnivore family that includes civets and genets.

6. Cultural Interrelation:

  • We can mention the article Genets: meet the strikingly beautiful, yet incredibly elusive cat-like creatures that roam Africa – and bizarrely Europe by David Lindo.
  • We can cite the meerkat called Timon from the American animated musical coming-of-age drama film The Lion King (1994), produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution under Walt Disney Pictures, and directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff.
  • We can also mention the documentary Meerkat: A Dynasties Special (2020) by Emma Napper, narrated and played by David Attenborough for BBC One.

S: 1. MW – https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/viverrid (last access: 12 May 2025). 2 & 3. EncBrit – https://www.britannica.com/animal/viverrid (last access: 12 May 2025). 4. TERMIUM PLUS (last access: 12 May 2025). 5. EncBrit – https://www.britannica.com/animal/meerkat (last access: 12 May 2025). 6. BBC Wildlife – https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/mammals/genet-facts (last access: 12 May 2025); IMDb – https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14091044/, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14091044/ (last access: 12 May 2025).

SYN: viverridae

S: EncBrit – https://www.britannica.com/animal/viverrid (last access: 12 May 2025); TERMIUM PLUS (last access: 12 May 2025).

CR: feline, mammal.