Central African oyan

Last updated

Central African oyan
Em - Poiana richardsonii 2.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: Viverridae
Genus: Poiana
Species:
P. richardsonii [2]
Binomial name
Poiana richardsonii [2]
(Thomson, 1842)
African Linsang area.png
Central African oyan range

The Central African oyan (Poiana richardsonii), also called Central African linsang, is a linsang species native to Central Africa. [1]

Contents

Characteristics

The Central African oyan's body is slender and long, with an elongated head and a pointed muzzle. Its fur is yellowish to reddish brown with darker spots on the back and flanks. Its throat and belly are lighter in colour and without spots. Its tail has 9 to 14 dark rings. Its body is 33–43 cm (13–17 in) long, and the tail about the same length. Its legs are short, and the soles of its feet hairy. Females are slightly smaller than males. [3]

Distribution and habitat

The Central African oyan is endemic to Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, the Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo east to the Albertine Rift. It lives in lowland and montane tropical rainforests. [1] In Gabon, a camera-trap recorded an individual on the forest floor. [4] In Gabon's Moukalaba-Doudou National Park, it was also recorded only in forested areas. [5]

Behaviour and ecology

The Central African oyan lives foremost in the canopy, but has rarely been observed on the ground. It is nocturnal and hunts small rodents and birds, but also feeds on insects. [3]

Its breeding habits are unknown. [6] [3]

Taxonomy

The Central African oyan or "Richardson's genette" was first described in 1842 as Genetta richardsonii, in honour of John Richardson, by T. R. H. Thomson, based on a zoological specimen collected in Fernando Po. [7] In an 1864 paper, published the following year, John Edward Gray transferred the species from Genetta to his newly erected genus Poiana . [8] :520 [9] In 1907, Oldfield Thomas and Robert Charles Wroughton described a new subspecies, Poiana Richardsoni ochracea, in the original orthography, from the area of the Aruwimi River near Yambuya, in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [10] :372 In a paper read at the 26 November 1907 meeting of the Zoological Society of London and published the following year, Reginald Innes Pocock described a further subspecies based on a specimen collected in Liberia, Poiana richardsoni leightoni, but in 1974 Donovan Reginald Rosevear elevated "Leighton's linsang" or the West African oyan from subspecies to independent species rank. [11] [12]

Two subspecies are recognized: [2] [13]

Threats

The Central African oyan is possibly threatened by deforestation and bushmeat hunting. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viverridae</span> Family of carnivorans

Viverridae is a family of small to medium-sized, feliform mammals. The viverrids comprise 33 species placed in 14 genera. This family was named and first described by John Edward Gray in 1821. Viverrids occur all over Africa, southern Europe, and South and Southeast Asia, across the Wallace Line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African golden cat</span> Small wild cat

The African golden cat is a wild cat endemic to the rainforests of West and Central Africa. It is threatened due to deforestation and bushmeat hunting and listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. It is a close relative of both the caracal and the serval. Previously, it was placed in the genus Profelis. Its body size ranges from 61 to 101 cm with a 16 to 46 cm long tail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Honey badger</span> Species of mammal

The honey badger, also known as the ratel, is a mammal widely distributed in Africa, Southwest Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. Because of its wide range and occurrence in a variety of habitats, it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asiatic linsang</span> Genus of carnivores

The Asiatic linsang (Prionodon) is a genus comprising two species native to Southeast Asia: the banded linsang and the spotted linsang. Prionodon is considered a sister taxon of the Felidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African civet</span> Species of carnivore

The African civet is a large viverrid native to sub-Saharan Africa, where it is considered common and widely distributed in woodlands and secondary forests. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List since 2008. In some countries, it is threatened by hunting, and wild-caught individuals are kept for producing civetone for the perfume industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spotted linsang</span> Species of carnivore

The spotted linsang is a linsang, a tree-dwelling carnivorous mammal, native to much of Southeast Asia. It is widely, though usually sparsely, recorded, and listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Small Indian civet</span> Species of mammal

The small Indian civet is a civet native to South and Southeast Asia. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List because of its widespread distribution, widespread habitat use and healthy populations living in agricultural and secondary landscapes of many range states.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Genet (animal)</span> Genus of carnivorans

A genet is a member of the genus Genetta, which consists of 17 species of small African carnivorans. The common genet is the only genet present in Europe and occurs in the Iberian Peninsula, Italy and France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crested servaline genet</span> Species of carnivore

The crested servaline genet, also known as the crested genet, is a genet species endemic to Nigeria and Cameroon. As the population has declined due to loss of habitat, it is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. It was first recorded in the Mamfe Division in Cameroon and initially considered a subspecies of the servaline genet. But now it is regarded as a distinct species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Servaline genet</span> Species of carnivore

The servaline genet is a genet species native to Central Africa. As it is widely distributed and considered common, it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aquatic genet</span> Species of carnivore

The aquatic genet, also known as the fishing genet, is a genet that has only been recorded in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since it is only known from about 30 specimens in zoological collections, it had been listed as Data Deficient on the IUCN Red List since 1996, as it is considered one of Africa's rarest carnivores. In 2015, it has been reassessed as Near Threatened.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rusty-spotted genet</span> Species of carnivore

The rusty-spotted genet, also called panther genet and large-spotted genet, is a genet that is widely distributed in sub-Saharan Africa. It is considered common and therefore listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnston's genet</span> Species of carnivore

Johnston's genet is a genet species native to the Upper Guinean forests. As it is threatened by deforestation and conversion of rainforest to agriculturally and industrially used land, it is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West African oyan</span> Species of carnivore

The West African oyan, also known as the West African linsang, is a linsang species native to the Upper Guinean forests in West Africa. It is one of the least known small carnivores in Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viverrinae</span> Subfamily of carnivores

The Viverrinae represent the largest subfamily of the Viverridae comprising three genera, which are subdivided into six species native to Africa and Southeast Asia. This subfamily was denominated and first described by John Edward Gray in 1864.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gabon bushbaby</span> Species of primate

The Gabon bushbaby is a species of primate in the family Galagidae found in Cameroon, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo. Its head and body length is 8.5 in with a 10-in tail, and it weighs about 10 oz. It lives in evergreen tropical rainforests and eats primarily fallen fruit, but also some arthropods.

<i>Poiana</i> (genus) Genus of carnivores

The African linsangs also known as oyans are two species classified in the mammalian subfamily Viverrinae, in the family Viverridae. There is one genus, Poiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linsang</span> Common name for several species of carnivore

The linsangs are four species of tree-dwelling carnivorous mammals. The name of these species originated in the Javanese language as linsang or wlinsang, and previously, was translated incorrectly in English dictionaries as "otter". The two African species belong to the family Viverridae and the two Asiatic species belong to the family Prionodontidae. Formerly, both linsang genera were placed in the subfamily Viverrinae, along with several other genera, but recent research suggests that their relationships may be somewhat different.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Genettinae</span> Subfamily of carnivorans

Genettinae is a subfamily of the feliform viverrids. It contains all of the genet species and the oyan species.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Gaubert, P.; Do Linh San, E. (2015). "Poiana richardsonii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2015: e.T41704A45219609. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T41704A45219609.en . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Wozencraft, W. C. (2005). "Species Poiana richardsonii". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 532–628. ISBN   978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC   62265494.
  3. 1 2 3 Van Rompaey, H. & Colyn, M. (2013). "Poiana richardsonii Central African Linsang (Central African Oyan)". In Kingdon, J. & Hoffmann, M. (eds.). The Mammals of Africa. V. Carnivores, Pangolins, Equids and Rhinoceroses. London: Bloomsbury. pp. 253−254.
  4. Bahaa-el-din, L.; Henschel, P.; Aba'a, R.; Abernethy, K.; Bohm, T.; Bout, N.; Coad, L.; Head, J.; Inoue, E.; Lahm, S.; Lee, M. E.; Maisels, F.; Rabanal, L.; Starkey, M.; Taylor, G.; Vanthomme, A.; Nakashima, Y. & Hunter, L. (2013). "Notes on the distribution and status of small carnivores in Gabon". Small Carnivore Conservation. 48: 19–29.
  5. Nakashima, Y. (2015). "Inventorying medium-and large-sized mammals in the African lowland rainforest using camera trapping". Tropics. 23 (4): 151–164. doi: 10.3759/tropics.23.151 .
  6. Whitfield, P., ed. (1984). Macmillan Illustrated Animal Encyclopedia . Macmillan Publishing Company. p.  92. ISBN   0-02-627680-1.
  7. 1 2 Thomson, T. R. H. (1842). "Description of a new species of Genetta, and of two species of Birds from Western Africa". The Annals and Magazine of Natural History; Zoology, Botany, and Geology. 10 (64): 203–205. doi:10.1080/03745484209445224.
  8. Gray, J. E. (1864). "A Revision of the Genera and Species of Viverrine Animals (Viverridae), founded on the Collection in the British Museum". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London : 502–579.
  9. Dickinson, Edward C. (2005). "The Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1859–1900: an exploration of breaks between calendar years of publication". Journal of Zoology . 266 (4): 427–430. doi:10.1017/S0952836905007077.
  10. 1 2 Oldfield Thomas; Wroughton, R.C. (1907). "XLIII.—New Mammals from Lake Chad and the Congo, mostly from the Collections made during the Alexander-Gosling Expedition". Annals and Magazine of Natural History . 7. 19 (113): 370–387. doi:10.1080/00222930708562657.
  11. Pocock, R. I. (1907). "Report upon a Small Collection of Mammalia brought from Liberia by Mr. Leonard Leighton". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London . 77 (November): 1037–1046. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.1907.tb06966.x.
  12. Rosevear, D. R. [in German] (1974). The carnivores of West Africa. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). p. 227.
  13. Burgin, Connor J.; Wilson, Don. E.; Mittermeier, Russell A.; et al., eds. (2020). Illustrated Checklist of the Mammals of the World . Vol. 2: Eulipotyphla to Carnivora. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. p. 408. ISBN   978-84-16728-35-0.