Civettictis civetta
The African Civet is an animal that we are always thrilled to encounter whenever we get the rare chance. They are quite large, standing up to 40cm high at the shoulder, measuring up to 1.4m in length and weighing up to 20kg. They’re not aggressive but can put up a good defence when cornered. Secretions from their anal glands, a defensive adaptation, is used to a small extent in the perfume industry – a practice that is to be frowned upon in an enlightened world.
Inhabiting a wide range of wooded habitats, provided there is shelter in the form of burrows, thickets or reedbeds, African Civets feed on fruits and seeds, carrion, insects, reptiles, frogs, smaller birds and mammals (even domestic cats and poultry), and they’re among the very few creatures that will eat substantial quantities of foul-tasting millipedes.
African Civets are usually seen alone or in pairs, and frequently travel along well-trodden paths through their home ranges. They’re most active during the night and only rarely venture out in daylight. They’re not adept at climbing and usually stay on the ground, but they are good swimmers. Females give birth to 1-4 pups after a 10 week gestation, The youngsters are weaned at 5 months of age. African Civets live to about 12 years of age in the wild.
In South Africa, the African Civet is found mainly in Mpumalanga and Limpopo, with scattered pockets of occurrence in the North West, Gauteng and Kwazulu-Natal. North of our borders, Civets are distributed almost all over sub-Saharan Africa with only a few areas where they have not been recorded. The IUCN considers the African Civet to be of least concern.
DeWetsWild 
Great to see photos of this fascinating and elusive animal. Are the daytime shots of wild civets?
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Thank you, Carol!
No, the shots in daylight are of a Civet at a rehab centre – hopefully he’s released and wild again by now!
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They have beautiful markings – spots, stripes, and masks! I didn’t know the anal secretions were used in perfume.
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They really are very special creatures.
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Very beautiful and so lucky to see these. We have genets here in southern Spain. Migrated from Africa many years ago and may have been brought over as pretty pets but too wild. Think are closely related to civets.
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You are quite correct – civets are (much) larger relatives of the genets.
Thank you for the interesting information about the genets being brought to Spain from Africa. Are they causing a nuisance there?
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Certainly not, are very elusive and would have settled in the time of the moors. Now the Egyptian mongoose if you have chickens in the countryside can be. But we need to learn to live with wild creatures. We have destroyed so much.
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Ahh, my favourite. We had two lounging around for a piece of steak at Augrabies earlier this year and actually saw one at our house near Agulhas too! So cute. And those tails!
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Ek wonder nou … wat is die dier se naam in Afrikaans? Is dit ‘n muskeljaatkat? Ons het amper ‘n soortgelyke dier in die Richtersveld gesien (maar ek sien jy noem die ‘civet’ kom in ander streke in ons land voor).
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In Afrikaans word hy n Siwet, of verkeerdelik Siwetkat, genoem. Die Afrika Siwet is BAIE groter as n muskejaatkat – sy skouer is omtrent so hoog van die grond af soos n mens se knieg.
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Sjoe, dis omtrent ‘n groot dier. Ja-nee, dan was dit beslis nie ‘n Siwet wat ons gesien het nie.
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Years ago – when one could still camp under the milkwoods at Tsitsikamma – there was a civet near our tent. We enjoyed its presence so much that we extended our stay by a few days. I didn’t have a camera then, but your pictures have evoked some happy memories.
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That is a wonderful memory, Anne – you probably still think of it everytime you visit the Tsitsikamma now?
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The number of wooden chalets built under those trees now have probably crowded them out. I do recall the incident when I walk past them though.
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They do look like raccoons and I think their coats are quite attractive.
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You are quite right, Janet – civets are beautiful creatures, these photos don’t do them justice.
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Look like distant cousins to raccoons with that little masked face.
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This is our version of Zorro! 😉
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