| Saharan striped polecat | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Mustelidae |
| Genus: | Ictonyx |
| Species: | I. libycus |
| Binomial name | |
| Ictonyx libycus | |
 | |
| Saharan striped polecat range | |
The Saharan striped polecat (Ictonyx libycus), also known as Saharan striped weasel and Libyan striped weasel, is a species of mammal in the family Mustelidae. [1]
The Saharan striped polecat is white with dark random stripes. It has black feet, legs, ears and undersides. Often, a white ring goes around the face and above a black snout. They are sometimes confused with the striped polecat, though are generally smaller and have distinct facial markings. It is about 55–70 cm (22–28 in) in length, including tail and generally weighs between 0.5 and 0.75 kg (1.1 and 1.7 lb). [2]
The Saharan striped polecat is distributed around the northern and southern edges of the Sahara in Mauritania, Western Sahara and Morocco in the west along the Mediterranean littoral of North Africa to the Nile Valley in Egypt, while in the south its range is the Sahel east to Sudan and Djibouti. [1] The Saharan striped polecat lives on the margins of deserts, especially in mountains, in arid, stony terrain and sandy semi-deserts, rarely in woodlands, and prefers steppe-like habitat. [3]
The Saharan striped polecat is nocturnal and solitary. It hides during the day in other animals' burrows or digs its own. It generally gives birth to one to three young in spring. [2] It moves about at night in the open in a quite deliberate way, with its tail held vertically. [3] It is known to spray a foul, skunk-like anal emission when threatened. [4] Before releasing the anal emission, it raises its fur in an attempt to warn the potential attacker. [5]
It eats primarily eggs, small birds, small mammals, and lizards. [5] Much of its prey is tracked down by scent and dug out of burrows, and although it is normally a slow, deliberate mover, it can move quite rapidly and pounce quickly when pursuing prey. [3]
It generally gives birth to one to three young in spring. [2]
In Tunisia, Saharan striped polecats are often caught and exploited because of the tribal belief that they may increase male fertility. [1]
The Saharan striped polecat is sometimes characterized as being a part of the genus Poecilictis. [6] [1]
The following subspecies have been proposed for the Saharan striped polecat:[ citation needed ]
The striped polecat, also called the African polecat, zoril, zorille, zorilla, Cape polecat, and African skunk, is a member of the family Mustelidae that resembles a skunk. The name "zorilla" comes from the word "zorro", which in Spanish means "fox". It lives predominantly in dry and arid climates, such as the savannahs and open country of Central, Southern, and sub-Saharan Africa, excluding the Congo basin and the more coastal areas of West Africa.
The rhim gazelle or rhim from Arab Language غزال الريم in Arabic(Gazella leptoceros), also known as the slender-horned gazelle, African sand gazelle or Loder's gazelle, is a pale-coated gazelle with long slender horns and well adapted to desert life. It is considered an endangered species because fewer than 2500 are left in the wild. They are found in Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia and Libya, and possibly Chad, Mali, Niger, and Sudan.
The steppe polecat, also known as the white or masked polecat, is a species of mustelid native to Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List because of its wide distribution, occurrence in a number of protected areas, and tolerance to some degree of habitat modification. It is generally of a very light yellowish colour, with dark limbs and a dark mask across the face. Compared to its relative, the European polecat, the steppe polecat is larger in size and has a more powerfully built skull.
The greater Egyptian gerbil is a small rodent in the family Muridae. It is native to northern Africa where it inhabits sandy deserts, semi-arid areas and oases. It is a common species, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern".
Ictonyx is a genus in the family Mustelidae (weasels). It contains two species:
The marbled polecat is a small mammal belonging to the monotypic genus Vormela within the mustelid subfamily Ictonychinae. Vormela is from the German word Würmlein, which means "little worm". The specific name peregusna comes from perehuznya (перегузня), which is Ukrainian for "polecat". Marbled polecats are generally found in the drier areas and grasslands of southeastern Europe to western China. Like other members of the Ictonychinae, it can emit a strong-smelling secretion from anal sacs under the tail when threatened.
The African striped weasel, the lone member of the genus Poecilogale, is a small, black and white weasel native to sub-Saharan Africa.
The lesser jerboa is a small rodent of Africa and the Middle East. Its diet consists mainly of seeds and grasses.
The North African gerbil is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in North Africa where its natural habitats are arable land and rocky areas of the Maghreb, and hot Saharan deserts.
The Libyan jird is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Western China. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, intermittent saline lakes, hot deserts, and rural gardens.
The forest shrew is a species of shrew in the mouse shrew family, Soricidae. It is found in Lesotho, South Africa, and Eswatini. Its natural habitats include temperate forests, dry savanna, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, and temperate grassland. The term "forest shrews" in the plural is sometimes confusingly used to collectively refer to a different genus, Sylvisorex.
