Paradoxurus hermaphroditus (Pallas 1777)

[Viverra] hermaphrodita Pallas 1777, in: Schreber, Die Saugethiere, Vol. 3, 25: 426 [1777].

Type Locality: Uncertain. "Das Vaterland des beschreibenen Thieres ist die Barbarey". Listed as " India?" by Corbet and Hill (1992).

Vernacular Names: Asian Palm Civet.

Subspecies::

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. hermaphroditus Pallas 1777

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. balicus Sody 1933

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. bondar Desmarest 1820

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. canescens Lyon 1907

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. canus Miller 1913

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. cochinensis Schwarz 1911

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. dongfangensis Corbet and Hill 1992

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. enganus Lyon 1916

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. exitus Schwarz 1911

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. javanica Horsfield 1824

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. kangeanus Thomas 1910

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. laotum Gyldenstolpe 1917

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. lignicolor Miller 1903

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. milleri Kloss 1908

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. minor Bonhote 1903

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. musanga Raffles 1821

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. nictitans Taylor 1891

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. pallasii Gray 1832

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. pallens Miller 1913

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. parvus Miller 1913

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. philippinensis Jourdan 1837

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. pugnax Miller 1913

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. pulcher Miller 1913

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. sacer Miller 1913

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. scindiae Pocock 1934

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. senex Miller 1913

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. setosus Jacquinot and Pucheran 1853

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. simplex Miller 1913

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. sumbanus Schwarz 1910

Subspecies Paradoxurus hermaphroditus subsp. vellerosus Pocock 1934

Distribution: Bhutan, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, New Guinea, Philippine Isls, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam; scattered records in Sulawesi, Moluccas, and Aru Isls, probably resulting from introductions.

Conservation: CITES – Appendix III (India); IUCN – Vulnerable as P. h. lignicolor, otherwise Lower Risk (lc).

Discussion: Two primary systematic studies – Chasen and Kloss (1927) and Pocock (1934 a) – considered lignicolor Miller, 1903 (an insular population) as conspecific. However, Pocock did not directly study Miller’s (1903 b) type specimen. Corbet and Hill’s (1992) review separated lignicolor from other hermaphroditus and perhaps it should best be listed as incertae sedis. They point out the pelage differences (a paler tail, and a more uniform body color). Synonyms allocated according to Pocock (1933 c, 1934 a) and Ellerman and Morrison-Scott (1951).