| African palm civet[1] | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Suborder: | Feliformia |
| Family: | Nandiniidae Pocock, 1929 |
| Genus: | Nandinia Gray, 1843 |
| Species: | N. binotata |
| Binomial name | |
| Nandinia binotata Gray, 1830 |
|
| African palm civet range | |
The African palm civet (Nandinia binotata), also known as the two-spotted palm civet, is a small mammal, with short legs, small ears, a body resembling a cat, and a long lithe tail as long as its body. Adults usually weigh 1.70 to 2.10 kg (3.7 to 4.6 lb). It is native to the forests of eastern Africa, where it usually inhabits trees. Its diet is omnivorous, and includes rodents, insects, eggs, carrion, fruit, birds and fruit bats. The animal is generally solitary and nocturnal.
Although resembling other civet species (in the family Viverridae) it has been suggested that the African palm civet is genetically distinct, and diverged from other civets before the cats did. They are therefore classified as the only species in genus Nandinia and in their own family, Nandiniidae, although this suggestion is not universally accepted.