Trivia question for Feb-19-2011

Olivia found this interesting carnivore and she feels fairly confident she can stump everyone with today’s trivia.   Let’s see if she is right:   This species is the largest mammalian carnivore on this island and has been compared to a small cougar.  This island is the only place in the world where they can be found.

It is found solely in forested habitat, and actively hunts both day and night.  Over 50% of its diet consists of one type of primate and the rest of its diet comes from endemic primates found on the island, tenrecs, rodents, lizards, birds, and other animals.  Litters range from one to six pups, which are born blind and toothless.

It is generally feared by the locals and is often protected by their taboo, known as fady.  The greatest threat to the species is habitat destruction.  Except for mothers with young and occasional observations of pairs of males, animals are usually found alone, so that the species is considered solitary.

So here are Olivia’s questions: Tell us what this species is, where they live, and also what primate makes up 50% of their diet?

Good Luck 😉

Answer:

Congratulations to “Arkte Spirit” for being the first with the correct answers.  She actually got all the answers correct.  Great job!   The tiny carnivore we featured is actually a Fossa (pronounced /ˈfɒsə/ or /ˈfuːsə/,) and it is a cat-like, carnivorous mammal that is endemic to Madagascar.  It is closely related to the mongoose family.

The Fossa is the largest mammalian carnivore on the island of Madagascar and has been compared to a small cougar.  Over 50% of its diet consists of lemurs.  The Fossa has been assessed as “Vulnerable” by the IUCN Red List since 2008, as its population size has probably declined by at least 30% over the last 21 years. The species is dependent on forest and thus threatened by the widespread destruction of Madagascar’s native forest, but is also able to persist in disturbed areas.

Here is more on these sleek looking cats: Fossa

Thanks for playing along 😉