Common Palm Civet

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

iCommon Palm Civet

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Family:	Viverridae
Subfamily:	Paradoxurinae
Genus:	Paradoxurus
Species:	P. hermaphroditus

Binomial name

Paradoxurus hermaphroditus
Pallas, 1777

The Common Palm Civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus), or Asian Palm Civet, Musang (in Malaysia and Indonesia), Luak or Luwak, or Toddy Cat, is a cat-sized mammal in the family Viverridae native to South-east Asia and southern China.

The Common Palm Civet is a nocturnal omnivore. Its primary food source is fruit such as chiku, mango, and rambutan and it has a fondness for palm flower sap, which when fermented, becomes toddy, a sweet liquor. It inhabits forests, parks and suburban gardens with mature fruit trees, fig trees and undisturbed vegetation. Its species name comes from the fact that both sexes have scent glands underneath their tail that resemble testicles. It can spray a noxious secretion from these glands. Its sharp claws allow it to climb trees and house gutters.

Chelonia suggests that the SARS virus entered the human population from palm civets captured in the wild and improperly prepared for human consumption.

In Sri Lanka, the palm civet is known as "Uguduwa" by the Sinhala speaking community. In most parts of the island, Uguduwa becomes a menance to the people due to fact that they litter in ceilings and attics of common households, and then make loud noises at night disturbing the sleep of the inhabitants of the house (noises are mostly due to their movements and fights).

Kopi Luwak is coffee that is prepared using coffee cherries that have been eaten and partially digested by this animal.

This species lives in a habitat that is fast diminishing.