HOME --> CLASS MAMMALIA
--> ORDER CARNIVORA
--> SUBORDER FELIFORMIA
--> FAMILY Herpestidae
GENUS Herpestes
Author: | Illiger, 1811. | Citation: | Prodr. Syst. Mamm. Avium.: 135. | Type Species: | Viverra ichneumon Linnaeus, 1758, by absolute tautonomy, through the replaced name Ichneumon Lacépède, 1799 (Melville and Smith, 1987). | Comments: | Revised by Pocock (1919, 1937, 1941a), Bechthold (1939), and Taylor and Matheson (1999). Coetzee (1977b) and Hayman (in Sanderson, 1940) included Xenogale (see discussion under naso). Allen (1924) included only ichneumon in this genus and separated sanguinea and pulverulenta into Galerella; for support, he contrasted the large ichneumon with the smaller sanguine-pulverulenta complex and reported proportion differences in measurements of skeleton and skull. His rationale has been repeated, in some cases verbatum, by Rosevear (1974), Ansell (1978), Smithers (1983), Meester et al. (1986), and Watson and Dippenaar (1987). Taylor et al. (1991) presented an allozyme analysis and argued for generic recognition, however, they did not include Asiatic Herpestes, and their consensus tree made the placement of the sanguinea/pulverulenta clade equivocal. Fredga's (1972) comparative chromosome analysis looked at variation including Asiatic and African Herpestes, and based on this, recognition of Galerella would make Herpestes paraphyletic. Comparison of measurements from Allen (1924), Rosevear (1974), and Smithers (1983) for African forms, and Bechthold (1939) and Pocock (1941a) for Asiatic forms reveals that the large morphological gaps originally identified by Allen (1924) dissolve when Asiatic species are included. Ellerman and Morrison-Scott (1953) and Wozencraft (1989b) suggested that differences between these taxa and other Herpestes are less than those found within Herpestes. Morphological criteria similar to that used by Allen (1924) have been used mostly at the specific level in other carnivores. Although the case is not strong, many recent authors have separated Galerella and this is provisionally followed here (see comments under Galerella) as nearly all agree that this is a monophyletic group. McKenna and Bell (1997) included Galerella. Taylor and Matheson’s (1999) phenetic analysis illustrated interesting parallel developments between Asiatic and African mongooses. Veron et al. (2004) suggested that placement of H. auropunctata and H. ichneumon in the same genus group to the exclusion of Ichneumia would make Herpestes paraphyletic. |
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| Offspring: SPECIES brachyurus SUBSPECIES brachyurus SUBSPECIES hosei SUBSPECIES javanensis SUBSPECIES palawanus SUBSPECIES parvus SUBSPECIES sumatrius SPECIES edwardsi SUBSPECIES edwardsi SUBSPECIES ferrugineus SUBSPECIES lanka SUBSPECIES montanus SUBSPECIES nyula SPECIES fuscus SUBSPECIES fuscus SUBSPECIES flavidens SUBSPECIES maccarthiae SUBSPECIES rubidior SUBSPECIES siccatus SPECIES ichneumon SUBSPECIES ichneumon SUBSPECIES angolensis SUBSPECIES cafra SUBSPECIES centralis SUBSPECIES funestus SUBSPECIES mababiensis SUBSPECIES numidicus SUBSPECIES parvidens SUBSPECIES sabiensis SUBSPECIES sangronizi SUBSPECIES widdringtonii SPECIES javanicus SUBSPECIES javanicus SUBSPECIES auropunctatus SUBSPECIES exilis SUBSPECIES orientalis SUBSPECIES pallipes SUBSPECIES palustris SUBSPECIES peninsulae SUBSPECIES perakensis SUBSPECIES rafflesii SUBSPECIES rubrifrons SUBSPECIES siamensis SUBSPECIES tjerapai SPECIES naso SPECIES semitorquatus SUBSPECIES semitorquatus SUBSPECIES uniformis SPECIES smithii SUBSPECIES smithii SUBSPECIES thysanurus SUBSPECIES zeylanius SPECIES urva SUBSPECIES urva SUBSPECIES annamensis SUBSPECIES formosanus SUBSPECIES sinensis SPECIES vitticollis SUBSPECIES vitticollis SUBSPECIES inornatus | Synonyms:
Calogale Gray, 1865 Calictis Gray, 1865 Herpertes Illiger, 1811 Ichneumon Frisch, 1775 Mangusta Horsfield, 1822 Mesobema Hodgson, 1841 Onychogale Gray, 1865 Taeniogale Gray, 1865 Urva Hodgson, 1837 Xenogale Allen, 1919
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