civet cat coffee kopi luwak

The large Indian civet (Viverra zibetha)/ Sagla (in Dogri)

Kingdom: - AnimaliaPhylum: - ChordataClass: - MammaliaOrder: - carnivoreFamily:-ViverridaeGenus:-viverra
Species: - Viverra zibetha

          We cannot afford to remain in ignorant about our biodiversity. I strongly believe that the first tool for biodiversity conservation is public awareness. The lack of public awareness, education and communication contributes to the relatively low political priority given to biodiversity issues by government.

The Sagla/large Indian Civet occurs in Nepal, Pakistan (Indus valley eastwards), Inner Himalayan region, Sivalik Hills (Kalakote Sunderbani and Nowshera), north of the Pir Pinjal, Kashmir,northeast India, Bhutan, Bangladesh to Myanmar, Thailand and China.
Commonly known as polecats or civet cats, they are neither polecats nor cats. These medium-sized mammals belong to the Family Viverridae and more closely related to cats and mongooses.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Indian_civet

           Civet has black and brown fur, white rings on their neck, small spot on the body, having dark stripes on the back. The paws are dark brown in color. Due to their long body and bushy tail, they look like a member of the cat family. However, they are not true cats. They have a head and body length of 68−89 cm with a tail length of 44.5−46.3 cm and a body weight of 7−15 kg. They are nocturnal and solitary animals that mixed only during mating.

Civets are omnivorous and opportunistic foragers. They feed on a wide variety of food items like carrion, rodents, birds, centipedes, millipede, eggs, reptiles, fruits, vegetables, grasshopper, crickets, termites and beetles were among the most common insects in the diet of civets. They also prey on aquatic animals such as crabs, earthworm and snails during rainy season.

Civets are great climbers; they are nocturnal in habit and use their acute senses of smell and hearing to locate their prey. Civets do not chase prey they just grab from their hiding places.

The civet produces a musk (also called civet) highly valued as a fragrance and stabilizing agent for perfume. Both male and female civets produce the strong-smelling secretion, which is produced by the civets perineal glands situated near the anus.

In Ethiopia, people use civet musk in traditional medicinal practice for headache, discoloration of skin, etching and even against cancer. In many parts of Ethiopia, civet farming is practiced as a means of income. Civet musk is harvested by either killing the animal or by scraping the glands of a live animal .The country officially exports on an average 1,000 kg of civet musk every year. The use of civet coffee (Kopi Luwak) a special coffee that includes part-digested coffee cherries eaten and defecated by the civet has been used in Indonesia and Philippines.

At Bandrai, Civet meat is treated as a delicacy; farmers view the civets as a pest, due to their raiding of gardens and poultry. The villagers have been hunting them down by employing hunting dogs in village or shoot by spotlight.

The species is listed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN 2010). But they are minimally threatened by hunting for meat and killing by farmers to protect livestock. Increase of poaching pressure and the lack of effective conservation action the population of civet (sagla) is undergoing a continuing decline in my village.

Therefore, if you want to live in a place which is bustling with life, colors, esthetic pleasure, spiritual inspirational and happiness, save wildlife and save nature.