Fam. 3. Viverridae.—The Civets, Genets, and their kind differ from the Cats in a number of points. They form, however, by no means so uniform an assemblage as do the Cats; so that the difficulty is, as Dr. Mivart has remarked, not to divide them into sub-families, but to avoid making too many. But before proceeding to subdivide the family we shall describe the characters of the family and contrast them with those of the Felidae.
All the Viverridae are comparatively small creatures. The head and body are more elongate than in the Cats. The fingers and toes are generally five; but there are some (e.g. Cynictis) where the formula of the toes is as in the Cats, i.e. four on the hind-foot. In the Suricate the fingers are also reduced to four. The claws are perhaps never completely retractile,[1] and often are not at all so. The dental formulae of the genera differ considerably; but in the majority there are more teeth than in the Felidae. The well-known sharp-pointed, conical papillae of the Cat's tongue are not present. The majority have a scent gland beneath the tail, from which the perfume civet is derived. There are a number of osteological characters which differentiate the two families; thus the alisphenoid canal is sometimes present. The bulla is divided, as in the Cats, but is externally constricted.
It seems clear from some at any rate of the characters, i.e. the more complete dentition, the five-fingered hands and feet, the non-retractile claws, etc., that the Civets are on a lower level of specialisation than are the Cats.
Sub-Fam. 1. Euplerinae.—The genus Eupleres is in many ways the most aberrant type of Viverrid, and is placed in a sub-family, Euplerinae. Its salient feature is the very peculiar dentition: peculiar in the small size of the canines, the canine-like character of the anterior premolars, and the resemblance of the premolars to molars. In some of the characters of the teeth, Eupleres is Insectivore-like, and was formerly grouped with that family. There are four premolars and two molars in each jaw on each side. It has five toes upon both fore- and hind-limbs; the skull is very slender. It has no alisphenoid canal. The only species, E. goudotii, is of an olive-grey colour, with dark bands across the shoulders in the young. The nose and upper lip are grooved. There are no scent glands. It appears to burrow in the ground, and possibly contents itself with a diet of worms. Eupleres is a
- ↑ The retractility is most marked in the Linsangs.
