Genetta poensis, Waterhouse, 1838

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2009, Viverridae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 1 Carnivores, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 174-232 : 190

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.5714564

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5714864

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/FC03440B-FFF2-FF92-EF94-409DFB3FF613

treatment provided by

Conny

scientific name

Genetta poensis
status

 

19. View Plate 14: Viverridae

King Genet

Genetta poensis View in CoL

French: Genette royale / German: Konigsgenette / Spanish: Gineta real

Taxonomy. Genetta poensis Waterhouse, 1838 View in CoL ,

Fernando Po.

Has been considered conspecific with G. pardina . Monotypic.

Distribution. Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Equatorial Guinea (Bioko I), and PR Congo. View Figure

Descriptive notes. Head-body 60-2 cm, tail 41-5 cm; weight 2-2.5 kg. A heavily built genet with a short, rough pelage.

The coat varies from pale yellowish-gray to yellow; the ventral pelage is whitish-yellow to gray. The nuchal stripes are not clearly defined. The continuous mid-dorsal line is dark and beginsafter the shoulder. There is no dorsal crest. The dorsal spots are elongated and squared, completely dark, and coalesced in variousparts of the body. The face has a well-marked mask, suband supra-ocular white spots, and a thin dark vertical line on the muzzle. The ears are broad-based and slightly rounded. The tail is thickly furred, with four to six pale rings; the proximal half is dark. The hindlimbs and forelimbs are dark and well spotted. The forefeet and hindfeet are spotted above and dark below. The skull is large, with the insertion of the masseter muscles always forming a narrow elevated crest. The premaxillary-frontal contact is present and the posterior extension of the frontal bones is narrow. The posterior chamber of the auditory bulla has a broken curve line. The ratio between the inter-orbital constriction and frontal width is less than 1 + 0-12. Dental formula: 1 3/3, Cl1/1,P4/4,M 2/2 = 40.

Habitat. Rainforest.

Food and Feeding. Nothing known.

Activity patterns. Nothing known.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Nothing known.

Breeding. Nothing known.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List. Only known from ten museum specimens, with no records since 1946. Urgent survey work is required to confirm if it still survives in the wild. Hunting pressure is a threat, as most of the museum skins were collected from local hunters or bushmeat markets.

Bibliography. Crawford-Cabral (1981), Gaubert (2003a, 2003b, In press d), Gaubert, Taylor & Veron (2005), Gaubert, Tranier et al. (2004), Grubb et al. (1998), Rosevear (1974), Schlawe (1981), Wozencraft (2005).

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Carnivora

Family

Viverridae

Genus

Genetta

Loc

Genetta poensis

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier 2009
2009
Loc

Genetta poensis

Waterhouse 1838
1838
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