The Cape grey mongoose (''Herpestes pulverulentus''), also called the small grey mongoose, is a small mammal native to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

, Lesotho and southern

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

Appearance

It is a small species (55–69 cm long, weight range 0.5 – 1.0 kg). It is a dark grey colour with a darker tip of the tail. The legs are a darker grey than the rest of the body. It has a typical elongated mongoose body-shape. The ears are small and rounded and are situated on the sides of the head. The tail is long and bushy. The teeth show adaptations for both cutting and crushing.

Diet and behaviour

The Cape grey mongoose feeds mostly on insects and small rodents, but will also eat

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

s, small reptiles, amphibians, other

invertebrate Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...

s, and

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

. They have been known to eat carrion and garbage as well. It is predominantly insectivorous but also carnivorous. Insects and other

arthropoda Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and cuticle made of chitin, ...

such as spiders are caught on the ground and then held down with the forefeet and eaten. Larger prey such as rodents are stalked and killed with a bite to the head. Large prey items are held down with the forefeet and then torn into bite size pieces with the teeth. Small rodents, in particular

Otomys African vlei rats (''Otomys''), also known as groove-toothed rats, live in many areas of sub-Saharan Africa. Most species live in marshlands, grasslands, and similar habitats and feed on the vegetation of such areas, occasionally supplementing ...

and

Rhabdomys ''Rhabdomys'' is a largely Southern African genus of muroid rodents slightly larger than house mice. They are known variously as striped or four-striped mice or rats. Traditionally the genus has been seen as a single species, ''Rhabdomys pumilio ...

, are their most important dietary component. On occasion, immature hares or the young of small antelopes such as Cape grysbok may be attacked.

Distribution

Until a few decades ago, the species was thought to be endemic to the

Cape Province The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...

, but it is now known to occur in much of the rest of South Africa and in the west, northwards to southern

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

. It is not yet clear how continuous the range is, nor how much of this wider presence is due to extension of its range. Its density in areas where the species is established, ranges from one mongoose per 60 hectares to one per two hectares.

Habitat

It inhabits macchia-type vegetation ( fynbos), semi-desert scrub ( Karoo), thicket and forest. However, it is not found in the

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

biome. Often they live in close association with man, often under the floors of outbuildings, and even live successfully on the fringe of suburbia. When habituated to human presence, they may tolerate close approach.

Behaviour

Herpestidae Galerella pulverulenta Small Grey Mongoose sitting erect

The Cape grey mongoose is diurnal. When not breeding, it is solitary, but litter remains together in a family party at least until late adolescence. They live in overlapping home ranges of 5-68 ha, with the males having larger ranges than the females. However, it is not entirely clear whether this species is territorial or not, or whether it might be more social than generally believed. They are poor diggers so they utilize piles of rocks, crevices, deserted burrows and hollows in tree trunks for shelter when there is not sufficient bush cover. They are often spotted by humans when they cross roads.

Reproduction

Litters of 1 – 3 young are born from August to December and are hidden in burrows, rock crevices or tree hollows. At birth, the pups are fully furred but their eyes and ears are closed, only opening after about a fortnight. The young remain in the breeding burrow until they are fully weaned, and leave when they are capable of independence.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1293310 Cape gray mongoose Mammals of South Africa Mammals of Lesotho Mammals of Southern Africa Cape gray mongoose