Long-nosed Cusimanse
Encyclopedia
The Common Kusimanse also known as the Long-nosed Kusimanse, is a small, diurnal
kusimanse or dwarf mongoose
.
-shaped body with dark brown
fur
that is thick, with a wiry texture down the back, and fine and soft on the underside. It has short leg
s, a short, relatively stiff tail
, long claw
s, small ear
s, small, dark colored eye
s, and an elongated nose
. Adult size is typically around 33 cm (13 in) with a weight of approximately 1 kg (2.2 lb).
is a highly social animal which lives in a small family group of 10 to 20, or more individuals, with a strict hierarchical structure. The members of the family group communicate through various vocalizations
including whistles
, chirp
s and growls
.
It is capable of climbing, but tends to restrict most of its activities to the ground. It is very territorial, and will mark the group's territory with anal scent gland
s, and defend it vehemently against intruders, even those of a much larger size. It has a variety of threat displays which include various growls and snorts, as well as physical movements such as lunging, back arching, and hair erection. The group is nomad
ic, not spending much time in one particular area of their territory. As they move from place to place, they find shelter in tree hollows, other animal's burrows, or termite
mounds.
n countries of Ghana
, Ivory Coast, Liberia
, and Sierra Leone
, and it has been exported to various other countries for the pet
trade.
It differs from other mongooses primarily in its choice of habitat, which is generally forest
ed areas near water, whereas most species
of mongoose tend to prefer open grassland
s, or semi-arid brush. It can be found from sea level
to elevations of 1000 m (3280 ft).
is primarily carnivorous
, consisting of insect
s, larva
e, fresh water
crab
s, small reptile
s, and small rodent
s. They have excellent eyesight
and keen sense of smell
, making them adept small prey hunters. They prefer to kill their prey with a single bite to the back of the neck. They will also consume various types of fruit
s and berries
in small quantity.
is reached between nine months of age to a year old. Females go into estrus up to nine times a year. Males initiate and terminate copulation without much courting
. Gestation
is approximately eight weeks, and each litter averages 2-4 babies, though they have six mammae. Females are capable of having three litters per year. Babies are born about 13 mm (0.5 in) long with their eyes closed, and a thick undercoat of fur. After about twelve days, they begin to open their eyes and explore their environment. At around three weeks the mother weans them, their guard hair
s begin to grow in, and they actively forage on their own. They do not grow to adult size until around 6-9 months of age. The life span of the Common Kusimanse in captivity is 10 years.
s worldwide. It tends to become quite bonded to its owner, and does not interact well with any other kind of household pet. It is highly energetic, requiring a large amount of space to satiate its natural wandering instinct. Without it, it tends to pace and act out with aggression. Its dietary needs can be met with a mix of various things including commercially available crickets
, mealworm
s, or mice
, along with a quality cat food
. In captivity the risk of obesity is high, and care should be taken to assure its diet is varied, and that it gets an appropriate amount of exercise. It will often try to eat almost anything it is offered or that it comes across which seems even remotely edible, and will often become aggressive if what it perceives as a food item is taken away. Captive breeding
is not commonplace, but has been done.
or endangered
, and while no exact numbers of the wild population is known, is not considered to be at risk.
Diurnal animal
Diurnality is a plant or animal behavior characterized by activity during the day and sleeping at night.-In animals:Animals that are not diurnal might be nocturnal or crepuscular . Many animal species are diurnal, including many mammals, insects, reptiles and birds...
kusimanse or dwarf mongoose
Dwarf Mongoose
The Common Dwarf Mongoose , sometimes just called the Dwarf Mongoose, is a small African carnivore belonging to the mongoose family .-Physical characteristics:...
.
Description
The Common Kusimanse has a vaguely weaselWeasel
Weasels are mammals forming the genus Mustela of the Mustelidae family. They are small, active predators, long and slender with short legs....
-shaped body with dark brown
Brown
Brown is a color term, denoting a range of composite colors produced by a mixture of orange, red, rose, or yellow with black or gray. The term is from Old English brún, in origin for any dusky or dark shade of color....
fur
Fur
Fur is a synonym for hair, used more in reference to non-human animals, usually mammals; particularly those with extensives body hair coverage. The term is sometimes used to refer to the body hair of an animal as a complete coat, also known as the "pelage". Fur is also used to refer to animal...
that is thick, with a wiry texture down the back, and fine and soft on the underside. It has short leg
Leg
Łęg may refer to the following places in Poland:*A former name for the town of Ełk *Part of the Czyżyny district of Kraków*Łęg, Pleszew County in Greater Poland Voivodeship...
s, a short, relatively stiff tail
Tail
The tail is the section at the rear end of an animal's body; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, reptiles, and birds...
, long claw
Claw
A claw is a curved, pointed appendage, found at the end of a toe or finger in most mammals, birds, and some reptiles. However, the word "claw" is also often used in reference to an invertebrate. Somewhat similar fine hooked structures are found in arthropods such as beetles and spiders, at the end...
s, small ear
Ear
The ear is the organ that detects sound. It not only receives sound, but also aids in balance and body position. The ear is part of the auditory system....
s, small, dark colored eye
Eye
Eyes are organs that detect light and convert it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons. The simplest photoreceptors in conscious vision connect light to movement...
s, and an elongated nose
Nose
Anatomically, a nose is a protuberance in vertebrates that houses the nostrils, or nares, which admit and expel air for respiration in conjunction with the mouth. Behind the nose are the olfactory mucosa and the sinuses. Behind the nasal cavity, air next passes through the pharynx, shared with the...
. Adult size is typically around 33 cm (13 in) with a weight of approximately 1 kg (2.2 lb).
Behavior
This mongooseMongoose
Mongoose are a family of 33 living species of small carnivorans from southern Eurasia and mainland Africa. Four additional species from Madagascar in the subfamily Galidiinae, which were previously classified in this family, are also referred to as "mongooses" or "mongoose-like"...
is a highly social animal which lives in a small family group of 10 to 20, or more individuals, with a strict hierarchical structure. The members of the family group communicate through various vocalizations
Animal communication
Animal communication is any behavior on the part of one animal that has an effect on the current or future behaviour of another animal. The study of animal communication, is sometimes called Zoosemiotics has played an important part in the...
including whistles
Whistling
Human whistling is the production of sound by means of carefully controlling a stream of air flowing through a small hole. Whistling can be achieved by creating a small opening with one's lips and then blowing or sucking air through the hole...
, chirp
Chirp
A chirp is a signal in which the frequency increases or decreases with time. In some sources, the term chirp is used interchangeably with sweep signal. It is commonly used in sonar and radar, but has other applications, such as in spread spectrum communications...
s and growls
Growling
Growling or growl is a low, guttural vocalization produced by predatory animals as a warning to others, as a sign of aggression, or to express anger. Low or dull rumbling noises may also be emitted by human beings when discontent with something or angry...
.
It is capable of climbing, but tends to restrict most of its activities to the ground. It is very territorial, and will mark the group's territory with anal scent gland
Scent gland
Scent glands are found in the genital area of most mammals and in various other parts of the body, such as the underarms of humans and the preorbital glands of deer and muskox. They produce a semi-viscous fluid which contains pheromones. These odor-messengers indicate information such as status,...
s, and defend it vehemently against intruders, even those of a much larger size. It has a variety of threat displays which include various growls and snorts, as well as physical movements such as lunging, back arching, and hair erection. The group is nomad
Nomad
Nomadic people , commonly known as itinerants in modern-day contexts, are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location. There are an estimated 30-40 million nomads in the world. Many cultures have traditionally been nomadic, but...
ic, not spending much time in one particular area of their territory. As they move from place to place, they find shelter in tree hollows, other animal's burrows, or termite
Termite
Termites are a group of eusocial insects that, until recently, were classified at the taxonomic rank of order Isoptera , but are now accepted as the epifamily Termitoidae, of the cockroach order Blattodea...
mounds.
Distribution and habitat
The Common Kusimanse is found in the west AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n countries of Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
, Ivory Coast, Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
, and Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
, and it has been exported to various other countries for the pet
Pet
A pet is a household animal kept for companionship and a person's enjoyment, as opposed to wild animals or to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic or productive reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful...
trade.
It differs from other mongooses primarily in its choice of habitat, which is generally forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
ed areas near water, whereas most species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of mongoose tend to prefer open grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
s, or semi-arid brush. It can be found from sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
to elevations of 1000 m (3280 ft).
Diet
Kusimanses are active foragers, and excellent diggers, which feed on a wide variety of things. Their dietDiet (nutrition)
In nutrition, diet is the sum of food consumed by a person or other organism. Dietary habits are the habitual decisions an individual or culture makes when choosing what foods to eat. With the word diet, it is often implied the use of specific intake of nutrition for health or weight-management...
is primarily carnivorous
Carnivore
A carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging...
, consisting of insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s, larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e, fresh water
Fresh Water
Fresh Water is the debut album by Australian rock and blues singer Alison McCallum, released in 1972. Rare for an Australian artist at the time, it came in a gatefold sleeve...
crab
Crab
True crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" , or where the reduced abdomen is entirely hidden under the thorax...
s, small reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
s, and small rodent
Rodent
Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....
s. They have excellent eyesight
Visual perception
Visual perception is the ability to interpret information and surroundings from the effects of visible light reaching the eye. The resulting perception is also known as eyesight, sight, or vision...
and keen sense of smell
Olfaction
Olfaction is the sense of smell. This sense is mediated by specialized sensory cells of the nasal cavity of vertebrates, and, by analogy, sensory cells of the antennae of invertebrates...
, making them adept small prey hunters. They prefer to kill their prey with a single bite to the back of the neck. They will also consume various types of fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
s and berries
Berry
The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....
in small quantity.
Reproduction
Due to their hierarchical social structure, only the primary members of a family group are permitted to breed. Subordinate offspring are often killed and eaten by the more dominant members of the group. Sexual maturitySexual maturity
Sexual maturity is the age or stage when an organism can reproduce. It is sometimes considered synonymous with adulthood, though the two are distinct...
is reached between nine months of age to a year old. Females go into estrus up to nine times a year. Males initiate and terminate copulation without much courting
Courtship
Courtship is the period in a couple's relationship which precedes their engagement and marriage, or establishment of an agreed relationship of a more enduring kind. In courtship, a couple get to know each other and decide if there will be an engagement or other such agreement...
. Gestation
Gestation
Gestation is the carrying of an embryo or fetus inside a female viviparous animal. Mammals during pregnancy can have one or more gestations at the same time ....
is approximately eight weeks, and each litter averages 2-4 babies, though they have six mammae. Females are capable of having three litters per year. Babies are born about 13 mm (0.5 in) long with their eyes closed, and a thick undercoat of fur. After about twelve days, they begin to open their eyes and explore their environment. At around three weeks the mother weans them, their guard hair
Hair
Hair is a filamentous biomaterial, that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Found exclusively in mammals, hair is one of the defining characteristics of the mammalian class....
s begin to grow in, and they actively forage on their own. They do not grow to adult size until around 6-9 months of age. The life span of the Common Kusimanse in captivity is 10 years.
In captivity
Due to its ease of training, and social nature, the Common Kusimanse is commonly available in the exotic pet trade and is found in many zooZoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
s worldwide. It tends to become quite bonded to its owner, and does not interact well with any other kind of household pet. It is highly energetic, requiring a large amount of space to satiate its natural wandering instinct. Without it, it tends to pace and act out with aggression. Its dietary needs can be met with a mix of various things including commercially available crickets
Cricket (insect)
Crickets, family Gryllidae , are insects somewhat related to grasshoppers, and more closely related to katydids or bush crickets . They have somewhat flattened bodies and long antennae. There are about 900 species of crickets...
, mealworm
Mealworm
Mealworms are the larval form of the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, a species of darkling beetle. Like all holometabolic insects, they go through four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult...
s, or mice
Mouse
A mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
, along with a quality cat food
Cat food
Cat food is food intended for consumption by cats.As with all species, cats have requirements for specific dietary nutrients, rather than ingredients. Certain nutrients, including many vitamins and amino acids, are degraded by the temperatures, pressures and chemical treatments used during...
. In captivity the risk of obesity is high, and care should be taken to assure its diet is varied, and that it gets an appropriate amount of exercise. It will often try to eat almost anything it is offered or that it comes across which seems even remotely edible, and will often become aggressive if what it perceives as a food item is taken away. Captive breeding
Captive breeding
Captive breedingis the process of breeding animals in human controlled environments with restricted settings, such as wildlife reserves, zoos and other conservation facilities; sometimes the process is construed to include release of individual organisms to the wild, when there is sufficient...
is not commonplace, but has been done.
Conservation status
The Common Kusimanse is not listed as threatenedThreatened species
Threatened species are any speciesg animals, plants, fungi, etc.) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future.The World Conservation Union is the foremost authority on threatened species, and treats threatened species not as a single category, but as a group of three categories,...
or endangered
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
, and while no exact numbers of the wild population is known, is not considered to be at risk.