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The stripe-necked mongoose (''Urva vitticolla'') is a
It is rusty brown to grizzled grey, has a stout body and short legs, a black stripe that runs laterally on both sides of its neck. Its short tail is mostly black, but grey at the base. Head to body length is with tail length of . Males are larger and heavier than females with the weight of . Females weigh about .
The stripe-necked mongoose is distributed in the Western Ghats and in Sri Lanka.
In 1911, one individual was observed in southern
It is diurnal and feeds on frogs, crabs, mouse deer, black naped hares, rodents, fowl, and reptiles. It generally avoids human habitation. They usually inhabit in riparian habitats or near abandoned tanks. In Sri Lanka, they are sparsely found within protected ranges such as national parks and sanctuaries. However, populations are commonly found over altitude. Even though reproduction habits are unclear, pups have been noticed in mid-May.
mongoose
A mongoose is a small terrestrial carnivorous mammal belonging to the family Herpestidae. This family has two subfamilies, the Herpestinae and the Mungotinae. The Herpestinae comprises 23 living species that are native to southern Europe, A ...
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
native to forests and shrublands from southern India
South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...
to Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
.
Taxonomy
English zoologistEdward Turner Bennett
Edward Turner Bennett (6 January 1797 – 21 August 1836) was an English zoologist and writer. He was the elder brother of the botanist John Joseph Bennett.
described this species in 1835. There are two subspecies. ''U. vitticolla vitticolla'' is from the provinces of Western Ghats, Coorg and Kerala, and has more of a reddish tint to its fur. The other, ''U. vitticolla inornata'', is found in the Kanara province, and lacks a reddish tint to its fur.
Description
It is rusty brown to grizzled grey, has a stout body and short legs, a black stripe that runs laterally on both sides of its neck. Its short tail is mostly black, but grey at the base. Head to body length is with tail length of . Males are larger and heavier than females with the weight of . Females weigh about .
Distribution and habitat
The stripe-necked mongoose is distributed in the Western Ghats and in Sri Lanka.
In 1911, one individual was observed in southern Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
.
Behaviour and ecology
It is diurnal and feeds on frogs, crabs, mouse deer, black naped hares, rodents, fowl, and reptiles. It generally avoids human habitation. They usually inhabit in riparian habitats or near abandoned tanks. In Sri Lanka, they are sparsely found within protected ranges such as national parks and sanctuaries. However, populations are commonly found over altitude. Even though reproduction habits are unclear, pups have been noticed in mid-May.
References
Further reading
*Pocock, R.I. (1941). The fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Mammalia, 2nd Edition, 2. Taylor & Francis, London, U.K. * Prater, S. H. (1971). The Book of Indian Animals – 3rd Edition.Bombay Natural History Society. Oxford University Press, Bombay, 324pp. * Corbet, G.B. & J.E. Hill (1992). Mammals of the Indo-Malayan Region: A Systematic Review. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. * Van Rompaey, H. & Jayakumar, M. N. (2003). The Stripe-necked Mongoose, ''Herpestes vitticollis''. Small Carnivore Conservation 28: 14–17. * Mudappa, D. (2013). Herpestids, viverrids and mustelids, pp. 471–498. In: Johnsingh, A.J.T. & N. Manjrekar (eds.). Mammals of South Asia -1. Universities Press, Hyderabad, India. * Menon, V. (2014). Indian Mammals - A Field Guide. Hachette India, Gurgaon, India, 528pp. * Sreehari, R. & P.O. Nameer (2016). Small carnivores of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve, southern Western Ghats, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 8(11): 9306–9315; https://dx.doi.org/10.11609/jott.2311.8.11.9306-9315 * Nayak, A.K., M.V. Nair & P.P. Mohapatra (2014). Stripe-necked Mongoose ''Herpestes vitticollis'' in Odisha, eastern India: A biogeographically significant record. Small Carnivore Conservation 51: 71–73. {{Taxonbar, from=Q735968stripe-necked mongoose
The stripe-necked mongoose (''Urva vitticolla'') is a mongoose species native to forests and shrublands from southern India to Sri Lanka.
Taxonomy
English zoologist Edward Turner Bennett described this species in 1835. There are two subspecies. ...
Mammals of India
Mammals of Sri Lanka
Fauna of South India
stripe-necked mongoose
The stripe-necked mongoose (''Urva vitticolla'') is a mongoose species native to forests and shrublands from southern India to Sri Lanka.
Taxonomy
English zoologist Edward Turner Bennett described this species in 1835. There are two subspecies. ...
Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN