A grison , , also known as a South American wolverine, is any

mustelid The Mustelidae (; from Latin ''mustela'', weasel) are a family of carnivorous mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, ferrets, martens, minks and wolverines, among others. Mustelids () are a diverse group and form the largest family in t ...

in the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

''Galictis''. Native to Central and South America, the genus contains two extant species: the greater grison (''Galictis vittata''), which is found widely in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sou ...

, through

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

to southern

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

; and the lesser grison (''Galictis cuja''), which is restricted to the southern half of South America.

Names

The generic name ''Galictis'' joins two Greek words: (, "

weasel Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slend ...

") and (,

marten A marten is a weasel-like mammal in the genus ''Martes'' within the subfamily Guloninae, in the family Mustelidae. They have bushy tails and large paws with partially retractile claws. The fur varies from yellowish to dark brown, depending on ...

/weasel). Compare the word ''

Galidictis ''Galidictis'' is a genus in the subfamily Galidiinae of the family Eupleridae: a group of carnivorans that are endemic to Madagascar. The name is from two ancient Greek words that both approximately mean ‘weasel’: ''galid-'' (see ''Galidia' ...

'' (a mongoose genus). The

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...

' is from a French word for "gray", a variant of , also meaning "gray". "French, from gray, from

Middle French Middle French (french: moyen français) is a historical division of the French language that covers the period from the 14th to the 16th century. It is a period of transition during which: * the French language became clearly distinguished from t ...

, from " Locally, in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

, it is referred to as a (literally "little ferret") or . In Portuguese, it is a .

Description

Grisons measure up to in length, and weigh between . The lesser grison is slightly smaller than the greater grison. Grisons generally resemble a

skunk Skunks are mammals in the family Mephitidae. They are known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or gin ...

, but with a smaller tail, shorter legs, wider neck, and more robust body. The

pelage Fur is a thick growth of hair that covers the skin of mammals. It consists of a combination of oily guard hair on top and thick underfur beneath. The guard hair keeps moisture from reaching the skin; the underfur acts as an insulating blanket ...

along the back is a frosted gray with black legs, throat, face, and belly. A sharp white stripe extends from the forehead to the back of the neck.

Habitat

They are found in a wide range of habitats from semi-open shrub and woodland to low-elevation forests. They are generally terrestrial, burrowing and nesting in holes in fallen trees or rock crevices, often living underground. They are

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nut ...

, consuming fruit and small animals (including mammals). Little is known about grison behavior for multiple reasons, including that their necks are so wide compared to their heads, an unusual difficulty that has made radio tracking problematic.

Evolution

Extant species

Fossils

Grisons first appeared in South America during the early

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

about 2.5 million years ago. They may be descended from the fossil genera ''Trigonictis'' and ''Sminthosinus'', which lived in North America during the mid to late

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

: * † ''Galictis hennigi'' * † ''Galictis sanandresensis'' * † ''Galictis sorgentinii''

References

* Nowak, Ronald M. (2005). ''Walker's Carnivores of the World''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press {{Taxonbar, from=Q756008 Ictonychinae Mammal genera Mammals of South America Taxa named by Thomas Bell (zoologist)