Wildlifeof Nepal
Large Indian Civet
Civets, Linsangs & Mongooses
Photo: (c) Ian Dugdale, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0
Viverra zibetha
Basic stats
Diet
Wide variety of small animals
Habitat
Forest; recorded to 2,250m in Nepal
Range
Nepal, north-east India, Bhutan and Bangladesh to Myanmar, Thailand, the Malay Peninsula, Singapore and China
Size
Head and body 50–95cm; tail 38–59cm
Weight
3.4–9.2kg
The large Indian civet is grey or tawny with a black stripe along the spine from behind the shoulders to the base of the tail. A whitish patch marks the front of the muzzle, the chin and fore throat are blackish, and the neck is banded with black and white. The tail carries a variable number of complete black and white rings (Wikipedia, general species account).
It is solitary, nocturnal and an opportunistic hunter of many kinds of small animals. In Nepal it has been recorded up to 2,250m in the Himalayas. In China the wild population fell 94 to 99% after the 1950s through deforestation, hunting for the fur trade, and use of its musk glands in medicine and perfume. Nationally Near Threatened (Nepal National Red List 2011).
Quick answers
- What does the Large Indian Civet eat?
- Wide variety of small animals
- What habitat does the Large Indian Civet live in?
- Forest; recorded to 2,250m in Nepal
- Where is the Large Indian Civet found?
- Nepal, north-east India, Bhutan and Bangladesh to Myanmar, Thailand, the Malay Peninsula, Singapore and China
- How big is the Large Indian Civet?
- Head and body 50–95cm; tail 38–59cm
- How much does the Large Indian Civet weigh?
- 3.4–9.2kg