True to its name, the dwarf mongoose (Helogale parvula) is the smallest mongoose. In fact, it is the smallest African carnivore. It is an extremely social and territorial animal, living in packs. All group members cooperate in helping to rear the pups and in guarding the group against predators. There’s a dominant pair, or pair of pairs, in charge of every group. They communicate with each other with the help of twitters, whistles, trills, and vibrations. Dwarf mongooses are diurnal and begin and end each day sunbathing and socializing with the members of their groups.
They sleep at night in disused termite mounds, although they occasionally use piles of stones, hollow trees, etc. Mongooses use anal and cheek gland secretions to mark upright objects near termite mounds used as overnight refuges.
Dwarf mongooses eat mostly insects, including beetles and grasshoppers, though they may also eat spiders, scorpions, small vertebrates, eggs, and fruit. They spend most of their days looking for food among brush, leaves, and rocks. They forage in groups, but each individual catches their own food. They kill their prey with a bite to the head. Dwarf mongooses are water independent but will drink when water is available. Being insectivorous, these animals may affect insect populations in their range.
A mutualistic relationship has evolved between dwarf mongooses and hornbills, in which hornbills seek out the mongooses in order for the two species to forage together, and to warn each other of nearby raptors and other predators. Hornbills catch insects, rodents and other prey flushed by the pack and in return serve as lookouts, sounding alarm calls when avian predators are sighted. Hornbills will gather at termite mounds where their mongoose packs spend the night and wait for them to emerge, sometimes even providing wake-up calls. If hornbills fail to appear, mongooses hesitate to leave their refuge and begin foraging.
Dwarf mongooses are found from Somalia and Ethiopia to eastern South Africa and Namibia. They live in savannah, woodlands, brush country, and mountain scrub. Their elevation range varies from sea level up to 5,900 feet (1,800 meters). They prefer territories that include termite mounds or rock crevices and woody vegetation, such as thickets or scattered bush.
There are no major threats to these animals at present. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List and its numbers today are stable.
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4 окт 2024
