Common Palm Civet

From Free net encyclopedia

{{Taxobox | color = pink | name = Common Palm Civet | regnum = Animalia | phylum = Chordata | classis = Mammalia | ordo = Carnivora | familia = Viverridae | genus = Paradoxurus | species = P. hermaphroditus | binomial = Paradoxurus hermaphroditus | binomial_authority = Pallas, 1777 }}

The Common Palm Civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus), or Asian Palm Civet, Luak or Luwak, is a cat-sized mammal in the family Viverridae native to South-east Asia and southern China.

The Common Palm Civet is a nocturnal omnivore. Its primary food source is fruit. Its species name comes from the fact that both sexes have scent glands underneath their tail that resemble testicles. It can spray a noxious secretion from these glands.

Some reports suggest that the SARS virus entered the human population from palm civets captured in the wild and improperly prepared for human consumption.

Kopi luwak coffee is prepared from coffee cherries that have been eaten and partially digested by this animal.

[edit]