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The fossa is the largest mammalian carnivore on Madagascar and has been compared to a small cougar, as it has convergently evolved many cat-like features. Adults have a head-body length of 70–80 cm (28–31 in) and weigh between 5.5 and 8.6 kg (12 and 19 lb), with the males larger than the females.
Rank Common name Scientific name Family Image Average mass (kg) Maximum mass (kg) Average length (m) Maximum length (m) Shoulder height (m) Native range
The only documented predator of the silky sifaka, other than humans, is the fossa, a cat-like carnivore found only on Madagascar. [40] Although no aerial predators are known, the silky sifaka often watches the sky and emits loud "aerial disturbance" roars at the sight of the large Madagascar buzzard (Buteo brachypterus) and other small birds. [20]
This is a list of the native wild mammal species recorded in Madagascar. As of June 2014 (following the IUCN reassessment of the lemurs) there are 241 extant mammal species recognized in Madagascar , of which 22 are critically endangered, 62 are endangered, 32 are vulnerable, 9 are near threatened, 72 are of least concern and 44 are either data ...
Madagascar is the fourth-largest island in the world. [2] The highest point is Maromokotro, in the Tsaratanana Massif region in the north of the island, at 2,876 metres (9,436 ft). The Republic of Madagascar is the second-largest island country in the world. [2] Its capital Antananarivo is in the Central Highlands near the centre of the island.
The fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox) is a smaller relative of C. spelea that still survives.. Although some morphological differences between the two fossa species have been described, [17] these may be allometric (growth-related), and in their 1986 Mammalian Species account of the fossa, Michael Köhncke and Klaus Leonhardt wrote that the two were morphologically identical. [18]
Historically, the relationships of the Madagascar carnivorans have been contentious, but molecular evidence suggests that they form a single clade, now recognized as the family Eupleridae. [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 6 ] The hyena family, Hyaenidae, is a sister taxon of the euplerid and herpestid clade, and when grouped together with the viverrids and felids ...
The history of the fauna of Madagascar in the context of plate tectonics and paleoclimate over the last 200 million years (Aepyornithidae arrived later than is indicated). A good example of Malagasy convergent evolution is the fossa, a Malagasy carnivore that has evolved in appearance and behaviour to be so like a large cat that it was originally classified in Felidae, when it is in fact more ...