Sunda stink badger
Drawing from Brehm's Animal Life
The Sunda Stinkdachs ( Mydaus javanensis ) is a species of the genus of Stinkdachse within the Skunks. He lives in the Great Sunda Islands in Indonesia and Malaysia.
Features
The Sunda Stinkdachs reaches a head-body length of 37-52 cm and a tail length of 3.4 to 3.7 centimeters. The weight is 1.2 to 3.6 kg. It is slightly larger than the Palawan - Stinkdachs ( Mydaus marchei ) of the Philippine island of Palawan. The coat is predominantly black with a bright backing strip, which extends to the fully bright and covered with long hair short tail, a bright head and partly bright legs. The snout is elongated trunk-like and resembles the snout of a pig house.
The skull has a length of about 90-104 mm in males and about 84 to 90 mm in females. The width in the zygomatic arch is in the males 48-49 and females 42-43 mm. The skunk has in the maxilla per half three incisors ( incisors ), one canine, three Vorbackenzähne ( Praemolares ) and a molar tooth ( molar). In the mandible, he has an additional Vorbackenzahn per half. Overall, the animals thus have 34 teeth.
Dissemination
The distribution area of the Sunda Stinkdachses includes the Indonesian islands of Java, Sumatra and Natuna Islands, both the Indonesian as well as the Malaysian part of Borneo. Other, as yet unconfirmed sightings come from Brunei, another state on the northern coast of Borneo. The species prefers lowland and less high -lying areas, but also occurs in altitudes above 2,000 meters.
Way of life
The Sunda Stinkdachs is nocturnal and spends the day usually in self-dug or removed buildings in the soil up to 60 centimeters deep. The omnivorous animals feed themselves, the main food of invertebrates such as worms and insects there. In addition, eggs, carrion, and plant material. The food is used to find the nose on the sense of smell and excavated with the help of the clawed feet.
Little is known about the reproduction of the animals. The females probably take two to three cubs in their den to the world that are suckled on the teats.
System
The first scientific description of the Sunda Stinkdachses Anselme Gaëtan Desmarest comes from from 1820, who described the species as Mephitis javanensis and thus the well-known skunks of the genus Mephitis (now Streifenskunks ) then assigned. Frédéric Cuvier described in 1825 the genus Mydaus and the type Mydaus meliceps, who served as the type species for the genus, and was later synonymized with Mydaus javanensis.
Sunda Stinkdachs ( Mydaus javanensis )
Palawan Stinkdachs ( Mydaus marchei )
Streifenskunks ( Mephitis )
Spot Skunks ( Spilogale )
White trunk Skunks ( Conepatus )
As another kind within the Stinkdachse of Palawan Stinkdachs ( Mydaus marchei ) has been described. The species was temporarily classified due to anatomical features in its own monotypic genus Suillotaxus. It is believed that the ancestors of this type were separated from the living on Borneo population of the Sunda Stinkdachses by the rising sea level about 165,000 years ago, fossils, however, are not detected.
Within the recent genera of skunks are the Stinkdachse be the most original species and all other skunks living today are faced as a primitive group. The time of separation of the Stinkdachse of the American taxa was present about 20.7 million years ago.
In addition to the nominate Mydaus javanensis javanensis on Java and Sumatra are distinguished with Mydaus javanensis lucifer on Borneo and Mydaus javanensis ollula on the Natuna Islands three subspecies.
Threats and conservation
The Sunda Stinkdachs is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources ( IUCN) as not at risk ( least concern ). This is due mainly to the comparatively large living room as well as the insensitivity adopted compared to habitat changes and human settlement. Although particularly in Sumatra and Borneo held an extensive destruction of the original forest habitats, there are numerous sightings of the animals away from the primeval forests. An extensive hunting and use of animals, including for medical purposes, is available, but reached no existence-threatening proportions.