Mongoose

Mongoose

Scientific Classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Family: Herpestidae
Genera and Species
Genus Atilax Marsh Mongoose, A. paludinosus Genus Bdeogale Bushy-tailed Mongoose, B. crassicauda Jackson's Mongoose, B. jacksoni Black-footed Mongoose, B. nigripes Genus Crossarchus Alexander's Cusimanse, C. alexandri Ansorge's Cusimanse, C. ansorgei Long-nosed Cusimanse, C. obscurus Flat-headed Cusimanse, C. platycephalus Genus Cynictis Yellow Mongoose, C. penicillata Genus Dologale Pousargues' Mongoose, D. dybowskii Genus Galerella Black Slender Mongoose, G. flavescens Cape Grey Mongoose, G. pulverulenta Slender Mongoose, G. sanguinea Namaqua Slender Mongoose, G. swalius Genus Helogale Desert Dwarf Mongoose, H. hirtula Dwarf Mongoose, H. parvula Genus Herpestes Short-tailed Mongoose, H. brachyurus Indian Gray Mongoose, H. edwardsii Indian Brown Mongoose, H. fuscus Egyptian Mongoose, H. ichneumon Indian Mongoose, H. javanicus or H. auropunctatus Long-nosed Mongoose, H. naso Bengal Mongoose, H. palustris Collared Mongoose, H. semitorquatus Ruddy Mongoose, H. smithii Crab-eating Mongoose, H. urva Striped-necked Mongoose, H. vitticollis Genus Ichneumia White-tailed Mongoose, I. albicauda Genus Liberiictus Liberian Mongoose, L. kuhni Genus Mungos Gambian Mongoose, M. gambianus Banded Mongoose, M. mungo Genus Mungotictis Narrow-striped Mongoose, M. decemlineata Genus Paracynictis Selous' Mongoose, P. selousi Genus Rhynchogale Meller's Mongoose, R. melleri Genus Suricata Meerkat, S. suricatta
Yellow Mongoose

Mongoose is a small carnivore that has fifteen genera and thirty five different kinds species. They looks cute like a pet, but are voracious carnivores perhaps best known as little snake killers.

Anatomy

Standing up Mongoose

They range in the size from about 1 foot to 4 feet long. [1] Their characteristics are; a long fluffy tail, short legs, rough coarse hair, flat broad ears, a pointed nose, a long body, and a long face, which helps them to dig the ground and makes holes. [2] They have non-retractile claws for digging. [3] They also have a big anal scent gland to signal to their opposite sex during reproductive season and to use for scent marking of territories. [4] Mongoose have a special immune system that protect their body from snake neurotoxin venom. [5] Yellow mongoose has fur with reddish and yellowish color and the banded mongoose has lines of dark and light of grayish brown color bands on their back. [6]

Reproductive

During the reproductive season, the oldest mongoose has a dominant breeding pair. Every year one female usually can bear three times, and each time a female can bear two to four babies. When the subordinate female also wants to have baby, they mate with subordinate male. But it is rare them to have babies and it's uncertain that they abort during pregnancy or fail to become pregnant. When they bear their babies, the newborn die quickly or gets killed by their parents. [7]

The oldest female spends little time with young for giving milk to them and rest of time subordinate female take care them. Sometimes they change babysitters with the males so they can go and hunt for food. [8]

Ecology

Dwarf Mongoose

Mongooses are spread out all over the world including Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Caribbean. [9]They live in variety of habitats including semi arid areas and forests. [10] It depends on which region they live, they live in rocky crevice or holes in the ground. [11] They are mainly carnivorous. For their diet, they eat reptiles, birds, rodents and frogs [12]but sometime they may eat some fruit, eggs, seeds, and nuts. They also eat insects such as beetles, termites, locusts, larvae, grubs, and spider. Most of time when they hunt food, they work together and share their food. They gather and bring the food to their baby. [13]

Some species of mongoose are nocturnal and some others came out during daylight time. Yellow Mongoose is a example of daylight animal. [14] and others are active during both day and night [15]

Community

They usually live together with in a group of up to fifty individuals with their siblings and offspring. [16] They lived in their territory about 75 acres which overlaps with other groups. [17] The oldest female and her husband lead the groups of mongoose. The offspring of the leader female is second in the community. Because of this, sometime during day time when everybody went for hunting one who babysit and guards the baby changed baby with their young so their baby can have better life. [18]

They easily get hurts from other carnivores because they are so small. So they always lookout for other and put one of mongoose as sentry or guard. Guards stand up and keep watching for enemy like left side of picture. When they see a predator they make sound to notify others whether it comes from air or ground and if it's from air they hide into the hole quickly as possible but if it's from the ground, they run away little bit slower than air predator because they can escape more easily because of obstacle [19]