Banded Linsang (Prionodon linsang)

Family: VIVERRIDAE

Measurement: HB 350-411, T 295-362, HF 54-66 (3 specimens).

Identification: Whitish to golden or buff, with a pattern of bold dark brown spots and bars on the upperparts and a distinctive barred tail. Small, slender and cat-like. Claws retractile, like a cat's and unlike those of other viverrids.

Similar species: other Bornean civets and wild cats are larger; the Malay Civet, Viverra tangalunga, has prominent black and white throat markings; but no sports, and a mainly black tail; the Leopard Cat, Felis bengalensis, and the Marbled Cat. F. marmorata, have a blunter muzzle and lack the regular, broad barring along the entire length of the tail.

Ecology and Habitat: Nocturnal. Arboreal and terrestrial. Sleeps during the day in a nest made in a hole either in the ground or in a tree. Diet includes small mammals, birds, reptiles and arthropods. Occurs in tall and secondary forests, plantations and gardens.

Distribution: Borneo: P.l.gracilis. Recorded from Usun Apau and G. Dulit in Sarawak.