Animal Diversity Web

Ge­o­graphic Range

West­ern Malaysia, Suma­tra, Bornea, Java, Thai­land, and In­done­sia.

• Biogeographic Regions
• oriental
  • native

Habi­tat

Banded lin­sangs live in trop­i­cal rain­forests. They spend a large por­tion of their time in the trees.

• Terrestrial Biomes
• rainforest

Phys­i­cal De­scrip­tion

The body of the banded lin­sang is 40 cm long, and the tail is about 34 cm. Banded lin­sangs are very pale yel­low with five large trans­verse dark bands on their backs. They have broad stripes on their necks with small elon­gate spots and stripes on their flanks. The tail has seven or eight dark bands and ends in a dark tip. Banded lin­sangs have re­trac­tile claws which are very sharp, and have spe­cial­ized ra­zor-sharp teeth for shear­ing their food. The soles of their feet have hair be­tween the pads and their toes. (Cin­ci­natti Zoo, 1997)

• Other Physical Features
• endothermic
• bilateral symmetry

• Average mass

  700 g

  24.67 oz

  AnAge

Re­pro­duc­tion

Very lit­tle is known about these an­i­mals' re­pro­duc­tion be­hav­ior.

• Key Reproductive Features
• gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
• sexual

• Average number of offspring

  2.25

  AnAge

Lifes­pan/Longevity

• Average lifespan
  Status: captivity

  10.0 years

  Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research

• Average lifespan
  Status: captivity

  10.7 years

  Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research

Be­hav­ior

Banded lin­sangs are se­cre­tive and elu­sive crea­tures. They are soli­tary. The fe­male off­spring stays with the mother until ma­tu­rity, but the male off­spring leave soon after wean­ing. Lin­sangs are semi­ar­bo­real and well-adapted for such a lifestyle. Their bod­ies are long and slen­der with short legs, suited for run­ning through the trees and jump­ing be­tween branches. Their long tails aid in bal­anc­ing. When hunt­ing, their slen­der bod­ies move snake-like along the path of the prey, very well cam­ou­flaged by their coats. (LA Nat­ural His­tory Mu­seum, 1997)

• Key Behaviors
• motile

Com­mu­ni­ca­tion and Per­cep­tion

• Perception Channels
• tactile
• chemical

Food Habits

Banded lin­sangs are om­niv­o­rous. A main part of their diet con­sists of small ver­te­brates such as squir­rels, rats, birds and lizards. (LA Nat­ural His­tory Mu­seum, 1997)

Eco­nomic Im­por­tance for Hu­mans: Pos­i­tive

Po­ten­tially im­por­tant as an at­trac­tion to eco­tourism. The Banded Lin­sang is found in many parks and re­serves through­out Thai­land, and they could be a draw for wildlife ob­servers.

Eco­nomic Im­por­tance for Hu­mans: Neg­a­tive

none noted

Con­ser­va­tion Sta­tus

CITES Ap­pen­dix II.

• IUCN Red List

  Least Concern
  More information

Other Com­ments

The banded lin­sang is the rarest of the civets. This an­i­mal is some­times re­ferred to as the Tiger-civet.

Con­trib­u­tors

Sarah Fran­tom (au­thor), Uni­ver­sity of Michi­gan-Ann Arbor.

Ref­er­ences

Cin­ci­natti Zoo. "http://​www.​cincyzoo.​org/​animals/​endangered/​banded_​linsang.​html"

Los An­ge­les Nat­ural His­tory Mu­seum. "http://​www.​lam.​mus.​ca.​us/​cats/​links/​wild_​Cats/​index_​shtml"

"Pri­on­odon Lin­sang," Mam­malian Species. Amer­i­can So­ci­ety of Mam­mol­o­gists, New York, New York.

Mc­Don­ald, David. 1984. The En­cy­clo­pe­dia of Mam­mals. Facts on File, Inc. New York, New York.