Pousargues's mongoose (''Dologale dybowskii''), also known as the African tropical savannah mongoose, is a

mongoose A mongoose is a small terrestrial carnivorous mammal belonging to the family Herpestidae. This family has two subfamilies, the Herpestinae and the Mungotinae. The Herpestinae comprises 23 living species that are native to southern Europe, A ...

native to

Central Africa Central Africa (French language, French: ''Afrique centrale''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''África central''; Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''África Central'') is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries accordin ...

. It is listed as

data deficient A data deficient (DD) species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as offering insufficient information for a proper assessment of conservation status to be made. This does not necessaril ...

on the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...

as little is known about its distribution and ecology. It is the only species in the genus ''Dologale''. Up to the late 20th century, it was known from only around 30

zoological specimen A zoological specimen is an animal or part of an animal preserved for scientific use. Various uses are: to verify the identity of a (species), to allow study, increase public knowledge of zoology. Zoological specimens are extremely diverse. Exampl ...

s in

natural history museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history scientific collection, collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, Fungus, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleo ...

collections.

Characteristics

The Pousargues's mongoose is brown with a grey belly and face. Its tail is bushy, and its front feet have strong claws. Its body length is between with a long tail.

Taxonomy

In 1893,

Eugène de Pousargues Eugène de Pousargues (21 October 1859 – 24 January 1901) was a French zoologist born in Saint-Omer (Pas-de-Calais). From 1885 he was an assistant to Alphonse Milne-Edwards (1835–1900), and served as préparateur at the ''Laboratoire de Mamma ...

first described the Pousargues's mongoose on the basis of

s collected in 1892 near the

Kémo River Kémo is one of the 20 prefectures of the Central African Republic. Its capital is Sibut. In 2024, official estimates suggest the population reached 197,538 inhabitants. Notable people * Andrée Blouin, political activist, human rights advo ...

. The type locality corresponds to the former French garrison founded by the Dybowski Mission close to the settlement of

Fort de Possel A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

. It is named in honor of Jean Dybowski who collected the specimens. It was initially subordinated to the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

Crossarchus ''Crossarchus'' is a mongoose genus, commonly referred to as kusimanse, often cusimanse, mangue, or dwarf mongoose. They are placed in the subfamily Mungotinae, which are small, highly social mongooses. Range and habitat Members of this genus a ...

'', but was later moved to its own genus, ''Dologale''. A genetic study focused on

Carnivora Carnivora ( ) is an order of placental mammals specialized primarily in eating flesh, whose members are formally referred to as carnivorans. The order Carnivora is the sixth largest order of mammals, comprising at least 279 species. Carnivor ...

highlighted the Pousargues's mongoose to be the sister-species of the genus ''

Helogale ''Helogale'' is a genus of the mongoose family (Herpestidae). It consists of two species and 12 subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that liv ...

''.

Distribution and habitat

The Pousargues's mongoose ranges from northern

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

South Sudan South Sudan (), officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered on the north by Sudan; on the east by Ethiopia; on the south by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Kenya; and on the ...

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

to western

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

. Mongooses sighted and recorded by a camera-trap in 2011 and 2012 in the Central African Republic were preliminarily identified as Pousargues's mongoose. In 2013, a group of Pousargues's mongooses was observed near Lake Albert in Uganda's Semliki Wildlife Reserve. In 2016, an individual was observed and photographed in

Garamba National Park Garamba National Park () is a national park in the north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo covering nearly . It is among Africa's oldest parks and was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980 for its protection of critical habit ...

Conservation

Field research for the collection of basic data on its ecology is indispensable for designing adequate conservation measures.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1537751 Pousargues's mongoose Mammals of the Central African Republic Mammals of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Mammals of South Sudan Mammals of Uganda Pousargues's mongoose