Geographic Range
Mungos gambianus
or Gambian mongooses, are endemic carnivores of West Africa, restricted from Gambia
to Senegal in the northern range. Gambian mongooses also occur east to west, as far
as Nigeria, limited by the natural eastern barrier formed by the Niger River. Records
of Gambian mongooses exist for Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Cote d’Ivoire,
Ghana and Togo.
Habitat
Gambian mongooses primarily inhabit dry to semi-moist habitats in both woodlands and
savannahs and have been documented in grasslands, coastal scrub and natural areas
interspersed with cultivated forests.
- Habitat Regions
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- savanna or grassland
- forest
- scrub forest
Physical Description
Gambian mongooses are small carnivores in the family
Herpestidae
. They are stocky compared to other mongooses, with a typical weight of 1.0 to 2.2
kg. Their body length averages 43 cm (ranging from 30 to 45 cm), with an average tail
length of 24 cm (ranging from 23 to 29 cm).
Gambian mongooses' pelage varies in color and uniformity, but their fur is typically
grey and brown on the head, neck and shoulders. Their fur color transitions caudally,
from grey-brown on their upper back to red on their thighs. Their grey-brown fur mixes
with red fur below their shoulders, down their back, and onto their hips and thighs.
Their tail fur is grey and brown, interspersed with black. Their tail ends with a
small, distal tuft of black fur. Gambian mongooses have unique markings. A patch of
yellow to pale silver-brown fur covers their throat. Red fur covers their body ventrally
on their breast, belly and their inner limbs. Their feet are covered in black fur.
They also have bilateral dark fur bands on their neck. Their neck bands are black
or dark brown and extend horizontally, from their ear to their shoulder.
Gambian mongooses do not exhibit any obvious sexual dimorphism, but research is limited
and Gambian mongooses are not well-represented in collections. Gambian mongooses are
similar in appearance to banded mongooses (
Mungos mungo
), but Gambian mongooses have smaller skulls and teeth. Banded mongooses have 10 to
15 dark dorsal stripes that are absent in Gambian mongooses, a clear distinction between
the two species.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- bilateral symmetry
Reproduction
Mating systems have not been well-studied in Gambian mongooses, but males of the closely-related
banded mongooses
exhibit aggressive mate-guarding behaviors that include following females during
foraging, remaining nearby and displaying aggression toward other approaching males
with snapping, lunging and pouncing behaviors. Female
banded mongooses
may mate with non-mate guarding males if separated and may commit infanticide. Gambian
mongooses may also exhibit these behaviors.
- Mating System
- cooperative breeder
Gambian mongooses have not been studied as extensively as their close relative,
banded mongooses
, so information is limited on their reproductive behavior. Reports indicate that
juveniles emerge from their dens in January, February, June and September, depending
on their geographic location. Banded mongooses exhibit synchronous estrus and parturition;
this may be similar in Gambian mongooses. The reproduction of Gambian mongooses has
been poorly described, with no information available on their breeding interval, season,
number of offspring, gestation period, time to independence or average age at reproductive
maturity.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
Gambian mongooses are social creatures, who may exhibit cooperative breeding as seen
in congenerics. In other species of the genus
Mungos
, cooperative breeding and alloparental care of young, including den babysitters,
grooming, playing and food provisioning are common behaviors.
- Parental Investment
- male parental care
- female parental care
Lifespan/Longevity
Lifespan data for Gambian mongooses is unavailable in the literature, but congenerics
have reportedly lived up to 17 years in captivity. Large contributors to mortality
in the genus
Mungos
are predation and infanticide, with 72% mortality reported from birth to independence
in
banded mongooses
.
Behavior
Gambian mongooses are gregarious, social carnivores, typically observed in groups
of 5 to 7 individuals while foraging. However, groups of 10 to 40 mongooses have been
reported foraging together. Gambian mongooses flee to thickets and run behind termite
mounds when startled. Troops in overlapping territories are assumed to be reciprocally
intolerant, as observed in other territorial mongoose species. Gambian mongooses are
diurnal and are not arboreal.
A cooperative breeding strategy that occurs in several mongoose species, is the use
of helper mongooses in pup rearing. The helper mongooses are known as escorts, and
they assist pups in many aspects of daily life, even though they are not the genetic
parents. Escorts are responsible for food provisioning, playing, grooming and other
pup care in
banded mongooses
and likely serve the same role in Gambian mongooses.
Home Range
No information is available on the home range sizes of Gambian mongooses.
Communication and Perception
Communication and perception are not reported in the literature for Gambian mongooses.
Food Habits
Gambian mongooses are insectivorous, social foragers, but their feeding ecology is
poorly studied. They are described as strictly diurnal foragers. Available reports
suggest they have a very similar diet to
banded mongooses
, including some soil
arthropods
and a variety of small mammalian and reptilian vertebrates.
- Primary Diet
-
carnivore
- eats terrestrial vertebrates
- insectivore
- omnivore
- Animal Foods
- mammals
- reptiles
- terrestrial non-insect arthropods
Predation
There is little information about predation of Gambian mongooses, but large raptors
may be their main predators. Crowned eagles (
Stephanoaetus coronatus
) are a known predator of the sympatric Liberian mongooses (
Liberiictis kuhni
).
- Anti-predator Adaptations
- cryptic
Ecosystem Roles
Gambian mongooses prey upon small vertebrates and arthropods, but not much is known
about their ecosystem roles.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
There is little information on the economic importance of Gambian mongooses to humans,
but closely related species can be raised as tame pets. Sometimes Gambian mongooses
are sold as bush meat.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
As with other mongoose species, Gambian mongooses could potentially be vectors for
parasites and infectious diseases, but no conclusive information is currently available.
Conservation Status
Gambian mongooses are a species of Least Concern according to the IUCN. They have
populations in many parks in Africa and there are no major threats to the species
at this time.
Additional Links
Contributors
Kristin Denryter (author), Northern Michigan University, John Bruggink (editor), Northern Michigan University, Leila Siciliano Martina (editor), Texas State University.
- Ethiopian
-
living in sub-Saharan Africa (south of 30 degrees north) and Madagascar.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- tropical savanna and grassland
-
A terrestrial biome. Savannas are grasslands with scattered individual trees that do not form a closed canopy. Extensive savannas are found in parts of subtropical and tropical Africa and South America, and in Australia.
- savanna
-
A grassland with scattered trees or scattered clumps of trees, a type of community intermediate between grassland and forest. See also Tropical savanna and grassland biome.
- temperate grassland
-
A terrestrial biome found in temperate latitudes (>23.5° N or S latitude). Vegetation is made up mostly of grasses, the height and species diversity of which depend largely on the amount of moisture available. Fire and grazing are important in the long-term maintenance of grasslands.
- forest
-
forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality.
- scrub forest
-
scrub forests develop in areas that experience dry seasons.
- cooperative breeder
-
helpers provide assistance in raising young that are not their own
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- male parental care
-
parental care is carried out by males
- female parental care
-
parental care is carried out by females
- arboreal
-
Referring to an animal that lives in trees; tree-climbing.
- diurnal
-
- active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- social
-
associates with others of its species; forms social groups.
- cryptic
-
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
- pet trade
-
the business of buying and selling animals for people to keep in their homes as pets.
- food
-
A substance that provides both nutrients and energy to a living thing.
- carnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats meat
- insectivore
-
An animal that eats mainly insects or spiders.
- omnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats all kinds of things, including plants and animals
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
References
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Cant, M. 2000. Social control of reproduction in banded mongooses. Animal Behaviour , 59: 147-158.
Colyn, M., S. Dufour, H. Van Rompaey. 2000. First observation of the Gambian mongoose, Mungos gambianus , in Guinea (Conakry). Small Carnivore Conservation , 23: 10-12. Accessed February 16, 2013 at http://www.smallcarnivoreconservation.org/sccwiki/images/7/7e/SCC_23.pdf .
Gilchrist, J. 2004. Pup escorting in the communal breeding banded mongoose: behavior, benefits, and maintenance. Behavioral Ecology , 15: 952-960.
Hunter, L. 2011. Carnivores of the World . Princeton, NJ, USA: Princeton University Press.
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Ogilby, W. 1834. Genus Herpestes Ill. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London , 2: 102-3.
Sillero-Zubiri, C., F. Bassignani. 2001. Observation of large groups of Gambian mongoose ( Mungos gambiani , Ogilby 1835) in southeastern Senegal. Hystrix the Italian Journal of Mammalogy , 12(1): 7-9. Accessed February 16, 2013 at http://www.italian-journal-of-mammalogy.it/article/view/4165 .
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Van Rompaey, H., C. Sillero-Zubiri, M. Hoffmann. 2012. " Mungos gambianus " (On-line). IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Accessed April 08, 2013 at http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/full/13922/0 .
Ziegler, S., G. Nikolaus, R. Hutterer. 2002. High mammalian diversity in the newly established National Park of Upper Niger, Republic of Guinea. Oryx , 36(1): 73-80. Accessed February 16, 2013 at http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=1&fid=96882&jid=ORX&volumeId=36&issueId=01&aid=96881 .