Falanouc

Falanuk ( Eupleres goudotii )

The Falanuk ( Eupleres goudotii ), also referred to as ants Civet, is a mammal of the family of Malagasy carnivores ( Eupleridae ). He lives in Madagascar and feeds mostly on earthworms.

Features

Falanuks are after the Fossas the second largest representative of the Malagasy carnivores. They reach a body length 46-65 centimeters, to which another 22 to 25 centimeters long tail comes. Your weight is 1.6 to 4.6 kg. You have an unconventional physique: the fuselage is elongated and stocky, the feet are large and provided with long claws. The tail is broad and rounded, due to the long hair he looks bushy. The head is small compared with the body, the muzzle is long and pointed, the ears are large and round. Remarkable are the teeth: they are small and uniform and remember in their construction to the bits of insectivores. In their physique they show some convergences for not more closely related Aardwolf.

There are two subspecies are distinguished: the nominate E. g goudotii has a reddish- brown fur with light brown belly, it is a maximum of 50 centimeters body length and 2.1 kilograms, the smaller subspecies. The second subspecies, E. g major has on the back a dark brown to gray fur, the belly and the inside of the legs are orange, this subspecies is also significantly larger.

Distribution and habitat

Falanuks are endemic to Madagascar. The nominate form inhabits the rain forests in the east of the island up to 1600 meters above sea level. They often live near water or in marshes. The subspecies E. g major lives in drier deciduous forests in the western and north-western Madagascar, in regions such Sambirano and Montagne d' Ambre. The geographical distribution of the two subspecies is not yet fully understood.

Way of life

Falanuks are likely kathemeral, which means that they can be active both during the day and at night. When sleeping places they use burrows of other animals, or they retreat to the roots of trees. Hold primarily on the ground, due to the long claws on the front feet move in a lurching gait continued. Falanuks live solitary, sometimes observed in groups it is believed to be mothers with their pups. There are terrtitoriale animals mark their territory with glandular secretion. The districts are presumably very large, exact numbers are not available. Before the cold dry season, they can store up to 800 grams of fat in its tail, its weight may be increased by up to 20 %. Whether they fall into a dry Rigid or hibernation is not known, at least in the eastern rain forests, animals were also observed in the dry season.

The food of Falanuks consists primarily of earthworms, besides they also take snails, insects, frogs and chameleons to himself. Their long snout and their claws help them to burrow through the soil or the foliage for food.

Reproduction

Mating takes place at the end of the dry season, from August to September, the young are born in the rainy season (November to January) to the world. The litter size is one or two. Newborns are well developed, they weigh around 150 grams, the eyes are open and you can go after one or two days. They are weaned at around nine weeks.

Threat

Previously, the tails of the Falanuks were used by the inhabitants as decorative objects. Today, more forest destruction, feral dogs and the competition of the entrained small Indian civet are responsible for ensuring that the stocks more and more to go back and Falanuk by the IUCN as " Near Threatened " ( near threatened ) is performed.

System

Traditionally, the Falanuk was counted among the civets. According to recent genetic studies it is, however, in a newly formed group, incorporated the Malagasy carnivores ( Eupleridae ). These studies showed that all predators of Madagascar - which have previously been performed in different families - from a common ancestor mangustenartigen descended, who probably in the late Oligocene or early Miocene ( about 24-18 million years ago) crossing the Mozambique Channel. The closest relatives of the Falanuk are the Fanaloka and the fossa, with which it forms the subfamily of Euplerinae.

More detailed studies might show that the two subspecies will be managed as separate species.