Galidiinae
Encyclopedia
Galidiinae is a subfamily
of carnivora
ns restricted to Madagascar
which includes six species
classified into four genera
. Together with the three other species of indigenous Malagasy carnivorans, including the fossa
, they are currently classified in the family Eupleridae
within the suborder Feliformia
. Galidiinae are the smallest of the Malagasy carnivorans, generally weighing about 600 to 900 g. They are agile, short-legged animals with long, bushy tails.
In some of these characters, they resemble the mongoose
s (family Herpestidae) of continental Africa and southern Eurasia, with which they were previously classified, and accordingly they are said to be "mongoose-like" or even described as "Malagasy mongooses".
When the classification of the mongooses as a family separate from Viverridae gained wide acceptance around 1990, the galidiines were classified with them in the family Herpestidae, an arrangement supported by cladistic analysis of morphological data. In the early 2000s, molecular phylogenetic inferences, based on data from several genes, provided evidence for a close relationship between galidiines and other Malagasy carnivorans to the exclusion of mainland feliformians. Accordingly, they were all reclassified into a single family, Eupleridae, which is most closely related to the mongooses of the family Herpestidae.
Within the family Eupleridae, some relations remain unclear, with evidence from several genes and methods of inference providing conflicting evidence as to the relations among Galidiinae, the fossa, and the Malagasy Civet (Fossa fossana). Molecular evidence suggests that Galidia was the earliest to diverge of the four galidiine genera and that Mungotictis and Salanoia are each others' closest relatives. Morphological evidence, on the other hand, supports the relation between Mungotictis and Salanoia, but suggests that Galidictis was the earliest lineage to diverge.
The subfamily includes the following genera and species:
, which may weigh as little as 500 g, to the Grandidier's Mongoose, which can reach a weight of 1500 g. All are similar in general form to mongoose
s, sharing with them an agile body supported by short legs, as well as a long, bushy tail and a flat, long cranium. Each of the four genera has a distinctive color pattern reflected in its common name: the tail of the Ring-tailed Mongoose is ringed with brown and black bands; both species of Galidictis have the body covered with broad stripes; the Narrow-striped Mongoose also has stripes over the body, but they are narrower and less conspicuous; and the Brown-tailed Mongoose has a dark brown pelage without any rings or stripes. Most galidiines share a dental formula of , but both species of Salanoia are distinct in having a dental formula of .
s like lizard
s, frog
s and rodent
s, and the other three species eating more invertebrate
s like insect
s and scorpion
s. The Ring-tailed and Brown-tailed Mongooses are also known to eat fruit
.
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of carnivora
Carnivora
The diverse order Carnivora |Latin]] carō "flesh", + vorāre "to devour") includes over 260 species of placental mammals. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore" can refer to any meat-eating animal...
ns restricted to Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
which includes six 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...
classified into four genera
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
. Together with the three other species of indigenous Malagasy carnivorans, including the fossa
Fossa (animal)
The fossa is a cat-like, carnivorous mammal that is endemic to Madagascar. It is a member of the Eupleridae, a family of carnivorans closely related to the mongoose family . Its classification has been controversial because its physical traits resemble those of cats, yet other traits suggest a...
, they are currently classified in the family Eupleridae
Eupleridae
The family Eupleridae is a group of carnivorans endemic to Madagascar and comprising 10 known species in seven genera. Probably the best known species is the Fossa , in the subfamily Euplerinae...
within the suborder Feliformia
Feliformia
The Feliformia are a suborder within the order Carnivora and includes cats , hyenas, mongooses, civets and related taxa. The other suborder of Carnivora is Caniformia...
. Galidiinae are the smallest of the Malagasy carnivorans, generally weighing about 600 to 900 g. They are agile, short-legged animals with long, bushy tails.
In some of these characters, they resemble the mongoose
Mongoose
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"...
s (family Herpestidae) of continental Africa and southern Eurasia, with which they were previously classified, and accordingly they are said to be "mongoose-like" or even described as "Malagasy mongooses".
Taxonomy
The relationships of galidiines to other carnivorans have historically been controversial. Up to the middle of the 20th century, all smaller feliformians, including members of the current families Viverridae, Herpestidae, and Eupleridae as well as some smaller groups, were classified in the single family Viverridae. Galidiines, which share some characters with both the civets and genets (current Viverridae) and the mongooses (Herpestidae), were allied early on both with the former and the latter, with some going as far as to doubt that they should be placed in a different subfamily than the other mongooses.When the classification of the mongooses as a family separate from Viverridae gained wide acceptance around 1990, the galidiines were classified with them in the family Herpestidae, an arrangement supported by cladistic analysis of morphological data. In the early 2000s, molecular phylogenetic inferences, based on data from several genes, provided evidence for a close relationship between galidiines and other Malagasy carnivorans to the exclusion of mainland feliformians. Accordingly, they were all reclassified into a single family, Eupleridae, which is most closely related to the mongooses of the family Herpestidae.
Within the family Eupleridae, some relations remain unclear, with evidence from several genes and methods of inference providing conflicting evidence as to the relations among Galidiinae, the fossa, and the Malagasy Civet (Fossa fossana). Molecular evidence suggests that Galidia was the earliest to diverge of the four galidiine genera and that Mungotictis and Salanoia are each others' closest relatives. Morphological evidence, on the other hand, supports the relation between Mungotictis and Salanoia, but suggests that Galidictis was the earliest lineage to diverge.
The subfamily includes the following genera and species:
- Genus GalidiaRing-tailed mongooseThe Ring-tailed mongoose is a euplerid that lives on the island of Madagascar. There is actually much disagreement about the placement of Madagascar's carnivores including the Ring-tailed mongoose, within the phylogenetic tree. Recent molecular work by Anne Yoder et al...
- Ring-tailed MongooseRing-tailed mongooseThe Ring-tailed mongoose is a euplerid that lives on the island of Madagascar. There is actually much disagreement about the placement of Madagascar's carnivores including the Ring-tailed mongoose, within the phylogenetic tree. Recent molecular work by Anne Yoder et al...
(Galidia elegans)
- Ring-tailed Mongoose
- Genus GalidictisGalidictisGalidictis is a genus of carnivoran in the family Eupleridae endemic to Madagascar.It contains the following species:* Broad-striped Malagasy Mongoose .* Grandidier's Mongoose ....
- Broad-striped Malagasy MongooseBroad-striped Malagasy MongooseThe Broad-striped Malagasy Mongoose, Galidictis fasciata, is a species of mongoose. It is a forest-dweller native to eastern Madagascar. The species contains two known subspecies: G. f. striata and G. f. fasciata...
(Galidictis fasciata) - Grandidier's Mongoose (Galidictis grandidieri)
- Broad-striped Malagasy Mongoose
- Genus MungotictisNarrow-striped MongooseThe Narrow-striped Mongoose , also locally called boky-boky in Malagasy, is a member of the family Eupleridae, subfamily Galidiinae. It inhabits the dry deciduous forests of western and southwestern Madagascar...
- Narrow-striped MongooseNarrow-striped MongooseThe Narrow-striped Mongoose , also locally called boky-boky in Malagasy, is a member of the family Eupleridae, subfamily Galidiinae. It inhabits the dry deciduous forests of western and southwestern Madagascar...
(Mungotictis decemlineata)
- Narrow-striped Mongoose
- Genus SalanoiaSalanoiaSalanoia is a genus of euplerid carnivoran with two currently described species found in Madagascar. They are mongoose-like, which is reflected in the older versions of their English names, for example brown-tailed mongoose which is now called brown-tailed vontsira. The name Salanoia is derived...
- Brown-tailed MongooseBrown-tailed MongooseThe brown-tailed mongoose, Malagasy brown-tailed mongoose, or salano is a species of mammal in the Eupleridae family. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests...
(Salanoia concolor) - Salanoia durrelliSalanoia durrelliSalanoia durrelli, also known as Durrell's vontsira, is a Madagascan mammal in the family Eupleridae of the order Carnivora. It is most closely related to the brown-tailed mongoose , with which it forms the genus Salanoia. The two are genetically similar, but morphologically distinct, leading...
- Brown-tailed Mongoose
Morphology
Galidiines range in size from the Narrow-striped MongooseNarrow-striped Mongoose
The Narrow-striped Mongoose , also locally called boky-boky in Malagasy, is a member of the family Eupleridae, subfamily Galidiinae. It inhabits the dry deciduous forests of western and southwestern Madagascar...
, which may weigh as little as 500 g, to the Grandidier's Mongoose, which can reach a weight of 1500 g. All are similar in general form to mongoose
Mongoose
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"...
s, sharing with them an agile body supported by short legs, as well as a long, bushy tail and a flat, long cranium. Each of the four genera has a distinctive color pattern reflected in its common name: the tail of the Ring-tailed Mongoose is ringed with brown and black bands; both species of Galidictis have the body covered with broad stripes; the Narrow-striped Mongoose also has stripes over the body, but they are narrower and less conspicuous; and the Brown-tailed Mongoose has a dark brown pelage without any rings or stripes. Most galidiines share a dental formula of , but both species of Salanoia are distinct in having a dental formula of .
Ecology and behavior
Galidiines are generally found in forest, but the Grandidier's and Narrow-striped Mongooses live in open habitats. All species dig burrows for shelter, and several species may also use tree holes. All five species can be found on the ground, but the Narrow-striped and Ring-tailed Mongooses also climb trees. Like true mongooses, galidiines are usually active during the day, with the exception of the two species of Galidictis. Breeding occurs during the (Southern Hemisphere) summer, except in Grandidier's Mongoose, which breeds year-round. Usually, only a single young is born. The Ring-tailed, Grandidier's, and Brown-tailed Mongooses live alone or in pairs, sometimes with their offspring, but the Broad-striped Malagasy and Narrow-striped Mongooses also occur in larger social groups. The diet varies among the species, with the Ring-tailed and Broad-striped Malagasy Mongooses eating mainly small vertebrateVertebrate
Vertebrates are animals that are members of the subphylum Vertebrata . Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates, with currently about 58,000 species described. Vertebrates include the jawless fishes, bony fishes, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds...
s like lizard
Lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with nearly 3800 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains...
s, frog
Frog
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
s and 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, and the other three species eating more invertebrate
Invertebrate
An invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. The group includes 97% of all animal species – all animals except those in the chordate subphylum Vertebrata .Invertebrates form a paraphyletic group...
s like 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 and scorpion
Scorpion
Scorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by the pair of grasping claws and the narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger...
s. The Ring-tailed and Brown-tailed Mongooses are also known to eat 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,...
.
Literature cited
- Albignac, R. 1972. The Carnivora of Madagascar. Pp. 667–682 in Battistini, R. & Richard-Vindard, G. (eds.). Biogeography and Ecology in Madagascar. The Hague: W. Junk B.B., Publishers.
- Durbin, J., Funk, S.M., Hawkins, F., Hills, D.M., Jenkins, P.D., Moncrieff, C.B. and Ralainasolo, F.B. 2010. Investigations into the status of a new taxon of Salanoia (Mammalia: Carnivora: Eupleridae) from the marshes of Lac Alaotra, Madagascar (subscription required). Systematics and Biodiversity, published online in advance of print: 15 pp.
- Flynn, J.J., Finarelli, J.A., Zehr, S., Hsu, J. & Nedbal, M.A. 2005. Molecular phylogeny of the Carnivora (Mammalia): Assessing the impact of increased sampling on resolving enigmatic relationships. Systematic Biology 54(2):317–337.
- Garbutt, N. 2007. Mammals of Madagascar: A Complete Guide. Yale University Press, 304 pp. ISBN 978-0-3001-2550-4
- Gaubert, P., Wozencraft, W.C., Cordeiro-Estrela, P. & Veron, G. 2005. Mosaics of convergences and noise in morphological phylogenies: What's in a viverrid-like carnivoran? Systematic Biology 54(6):865–894.
- Lydekker, R. 1894. A hand-book to the Carnivora. Part 1, Cats, civets, and mungooses. London: Allen.
- Nowak, R.M. 2005. Walker's Carnivores of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, 313 pp. ISBN 978-0-8018-8032-2
- Pocock, R.I. On some external characters of Galidia, Galidictis, and related genera. Annals and Magazine of Natural History (8)16:351–356.
- Wozencraft, W.C. 2005. Order Carnivora. Pp. 532–628 in Wilson, D.E. & Reeder, D.M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: a taxonomic and geographic reference. 3rd ed. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2 vols., 2142 pp. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0
- Yoder, A.D. & Flynn, J.J. 2003. Origin of Malagasy Carnivora. Pp. 1253–1256 in Goodman, S.M. & Benstead, J. (eds.). The Natural History of Madagascar. University of Chicago Press.
- Yoder, A.D., Burns, M.M., Zehr, S., Delefosse, T., Veron, G., Goodman, S.M. & Flynn, J.J. 2003. Single origin of Malagasy Carnivora from an African ancestor. Nature 421:734–737.