Herpestes auropunctatus

The small Indian mongoose (Herpestes auropunctatus) has a slender body with short legs. The head is elongated with a pointed muzzle. The tail is robustly muscular at the base and tapers gradually throughout its length, ending in tufts of slightly longer fur that are prized by paint brush manufacturers (Bailo and Sustic, 2012). Length of head and body is 509 to 671mm. Ears are short and rounded (15-30mm -- Roy, 2001) and project only slightly beyond the fur. Feet have five toes with long sharp non-retractile claws. Hair is short. Both sexes have an extensible anal pad with ducted glands lateral to the anus. Fur is soft, pale to dark brown flecked with golden spots. Underside is paler than rest of body. Eyes are amber/brown but are blue green in young animals. There is distinct sexual dimorphism. Females range in length from 509 to 578mm with a mean of 540mm. Sexual dimorphism is even more pronounced in populations that have been introduced to island ecosystems for over a century or more (Simberloff et al. 2000). Body mass at sexual maturity ranges from 305 to exceptionally just over 1 kg in large adult males with a mean of 434g. Males have a wider head and more robust body ranging in length from 544 to 671mm with a mean of 591mm (Nellis et al. 1989).