Stripe-necked mongoose

Stripe-necked mongoose
Adult from Nagarhole National Park
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Family:	Herpestidae
Genus:	Herpestes
Species:	H. vitticollis
Binomial name
Herpestes vitticollis Bennett, 1835
Stripe-necked mongoose range

The stripe-necked mongoose (Herpestes vitticollis) is a species of mongoose found in southern India to Sri Lanka.

The stripe-necked mongoose is the largest of the Asiatic mongooses. The range distribution of the Stripe-necked Mongoose was restricted to the southern part of India and Sri Lanka (Mudappa 2013). The Stripe-necked Mongoose was recorded from many parts of the Western Ghats (Pocock 1941; Prater 1971; Corbet & Hill 1992; Van Rompaey & Jayakumar 2003; Mudappa 2013; Menon 2014; Sreehari & Nameer 2016). Distribution of the Stripe-necked Mongoose in Similipal Tiger Reserve, Odisha was reported by Nayak (2014). Similipal is the southeastern extension of the Chota Nagpur plateau (Ray 2005). Although there was a sighting record, there were no specimens from the Eastern Ghats (Allen 1911). Five records confirm the Stripe-necked Mongoose in Papikonda National Park and adjacent reserve forests,first report from the Eastern Ghats.It has a stout body set on short legs. It is easily distinguished by the black stripe that runs laterally on both sides of its neck. The body coloration is a rusty brown to grizzled grey. The relatively short tail is mostly black, with grey at the base. The stripe-necked mongoose feeds on frogs, crabs, mouse deer, hares, rodents, fowl, and reptiles. This mongoose species is more diurnal in habits. They prefer forested areas near a fresh water source. They are often found in swamps and rice fields.

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  A pair of stripe-necked mongooses from Anamalai Hills, Southern Western Ghats, India
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  Stripe necked mongoose seen in Nagarahole Tiger reserve, Karnataka, India

There are two subspecies. H. vitticollis vitticollis is from the provinces of Western Ghats, Coorg and Kerala, and has more of a reddish tint to its fur. The other, H. vitticollis inornatus, is found in the Kanara province, and lacks a reddish tint to its fur.

References

2.Pocock, R.I. (1941). The fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Mammalia, 2nd Edition, 2. Taylor & Francis, London, U.K. 3.Prater, S.H. (1971). The Book of Indian Animals – 3rd Edition.Bombay Natural History Society. Oxford University Press, Bombay, 324pp. 4.Corbet, G.B. & J.E. Hill (1992). Mammals of the Indo-Malayan Region: A Systematic Review. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 5.Van Rompaey, H. & M.N. Jayakumar (2003). The Stripe-necked Mongoose, Herpestes vitticollis. Small Carnivore Conservation 28: 14–17. 6.Mudappa, D. (2013). Herpestids, viverrids and mustelids, pp. 471–498. In: Johnsingh, A.J.T. & N. Manjrekar (eds.). Mammals of South Asia -1. Universities Press, Hyderabad, India. 7.Menon, V. (2014). Indian Mammals - A Field Guide. Hachette India, Gurgaon, India, 528pp. 8.Sreehari, R. & P.O. Nameer (2016). Small carnivores of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve, southern Western Ghats, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 8(11): 9306–9315; http://dx.doi.org/10.11609/jott.2311. 8.11.9306-9315 9.Nayak, A.K., M.V. Nair & P.P. Mohapatra (2014). Stripenecked Mongoose Herpestes vitticollis in Odisha, eastern India: A biogeographically significant record. Small Carnivore Conservation 51: 71–73. 10.Ray, G.C. (2005). Geography of Orissa. Kitab Mahal, Cuttack, India. 11.Allen, P.R. (1911). Mongooses in the Eastern Ghats. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 21: 237–238.