Thierry's Hausa Genets (Genetta thierryi): Ringtails of the Elbow of Western Africa

Common and scientific names act as identifiers of the world's known animals and plants. Common, trivial, or vernacular names become current through expert decisions or tradition's weight. Binomial (“two-name”), Latin, scientific, or taxonomic names emerge from scholarly consensus. But they sometimes find overlaps as translations of beloved, respected common names and vice versa. So goes the case of Thierry's hausa genets. The common name hausa honors the same-named ancient civilization in modern northern Nigeria and the present-day language and peoples of Niger and Nigeria as well as of:

• Cameroon;

• Chad;

• Ghana;

• Ivory Coast;

• Sudan;

• Togo.

The prevailing designations, Genetta thierryi in scientific terminology and Thierry's genet in common speech, memorialize the achievements of the viverrid's pre-eminent collector.

Official identification of Thierry's hausa genets dates to 1902. It honors Gaston Thierry (July 17, 1866 – September 16, 1904), as:

• Munich-born Gymnasium (American prep or British public school equivalent) graduate;
• Naturalist in Cameroon and Togo;
• Officer attaining first lieutenancy by 1894;
• Official realizing captaincy by 1902 and Nigeria’s first resident ministry at Adamawa by 1903;
• Victim attacked by poisoned arrows during Kirdi rebellions near Mubi, Nigeria in 1904 and buried in Garoua, Cameroon.

Its author is Georg Friedrich Paul Matschie (August 11, 1861 – March 7, 1926), as:

• Brandenburg an der Havel-born zoologist;
• Halle and Berlin University-educated mathematician and scientist;
• Zoological Museum of Berlin mammalogist in 1892, curator in 1895, professor in 1902, and second director in 1924.

The homeland of Thierry's hausa genets includes:

• Benin;
• Burkina Faso;
• Cameroon;
• Central African Republic;
• Chad;
• Gambia;
• Ghana;
• Guinea-Bissau;
• Ivory Coast;
• Mali;
• Mauritania;
• Niger;
• Nigeria;
• Senegal;
• Sierra Leone;
• Togo.

It merges with West African components in the bio-geographies of:

• African-Eurasian common small-spotted genets (Genetta genetta);
• Pardine genets (Genetta pardina);
• Rusty-spotted panther genets (Genetta maculata).

Distinct physiques and ranges nevertheless obviate misidentifying different genets. For example, common, pardine, and rusty-spotted genets overlap in:

• Forest-savannah mosaics;
• Woodland savannahs.

Common genets prefer not to frequent the dense rainforests of pardine, rusty-spotted, and Thierry's genets. Thierry's genets refrain from occupying the montane forests of rusty-spotted genets. With common genets, they relish:

• Brush-grass, dry, Guinean, and moist savannahs;
• Dry wooded steppes;
• Moist woodlands.

Super-quick, super-quiet agility historically challenges genet identifications. But corporeal clarity, orderly markings, and undarkened chins emerge from camera-trapped records and cursory impressions of Thierry's hausa genets. The beige, light grey-brown head has:

• Alert, rounded, white-tufted ears;
• Big, dark-rimmed, rounded eyes with white eye-rings;
• Dark whiskers;
• Darkened, diagonal muzzle lines;
• White-patched mouth, nose, and throat.

The same-colored body has:

• Dark, shoulders-to-tail-base, mid-dorsal line overlaid by a brighter stripe and paralleled on each side by same-length, spot-merged striping;
• 4 rows of black to rusty spots arranged loosely across each flank;
• Hairless depressions on each sole;
• Unspotted limbs.

The dark-tipped tail showcases:

• Dark base-to-tip, smudged line;
• 7 – 9 each of incomplete, thinner dark and wider pale (orange-white or white) rings.

Scientists believe that Thierry's genets align with general genet life cycles and natural histories. They therefore expect:

• Allowing home territories to overlap for mixed-gender neighbors but to separate for same-gender neighbors;
• Avoiding predatory mammals, raptors, and reptiles;
• Conducting nocturnal forages as couples or singles;
• Constructing escape networks and foray routes;
• Establishing regular terrestrial latrines;
• Feeding as obligate carnivores (“flesh-eaters”) upon small mammals and as opportunistic omnivores (“everything-eaters”) upon eggs, fruits, reptiles, and roots;
• Locating permanent dens in burrows, crevices or hollows;
• Scent-marking group territories and home ranges.

They know of 2 sets of 2 – 4 grey-furred kits:

• Being delivered bi-annually after 78-day gestations;
• Hearing and seeing within 14 days;
• Nursing 62 days;
• Reproducing at 2 – 4 years.

As adults, Thierry’s genets communicate economy of design and lightness of color. They display physical and sexual maturity with:

• Dentition of 12 incisors, 4 canines, 16 premolars, and 8 molars;
• Head-and-body lengths of 14.13 – 18.66 inches (359 – 474 millimeters);
• Tail lengths of 12.09 – 18.39 inches (307 – 467 millimeters);
• Tail-hair lengths of 0.79 – 1.18 inches (20 – 30 millimeters);
• Weights of 1.76 – 3.97 pounds (0.8 – 1.8 kilograms).

With adulthood, they find themselves almost:

• 50% through their estimated 7-year generations;
• 50 – 75% through their guesstimated life expectancies of 5 – 15 years.

Surviving predators to and through parenthood is uncertain where environmental configurations monthly average:

• 4.28 inches (108.6 millimeters) in precipitation;
• 79.83°F (26.57°C) in temperature;
• 36.05 inches (915.75 millimeters) in evapo-transpiration.

In domestication, all genets attempt to get along with people and pets even though birds and hamsters usually remain prey. In the wild, they avoid confrontations. But if need be, they defend themselves with:

• Arched backs;
• Digitigrade (“on-the-digits,” “tiptoed”), high-speed ascents, chases, descents, getaways, jumps, and leaps;
• Handstand-released stink-bombs;
• Hissed saliva-balls;
• Raised mid-dorsal and tail hairs;
• Sharp teeth capable of inflicting lethal, painless, quick nape-of-the-neck bites;
• Super-refined hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting, and touching;
• 20 curved, retractable, powerful claws.

They therefore may -- or not -- survive predation and sustain populations. But flesh- and fur-seeking over-hunting, globally-warmed climate change, and habitat-fragmenting agro-industrialism necessitate:

• Governmental enforcement of existing and expanded protected areas;
• Scientific research into genet bio-geography and biology;
• Wildlife-lovers’ support.

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

view of Benué River (French: la Bénoué) from Yola, Adamawa State, northeastern Nigeria: Leigh g bowden, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Benue_SE_Yola.jpg

Distribution data from IUCN Red List: Chermundy/IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, species assessors and the authors of the spatial data, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Haussa_Genet_area.png

Georg Friedrich Paul Matschie
1901 image: Zeitschrift "Berliner Leben", Heft 09 ("Berliner Leben" magazine, issue 9): Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paul_Matschie_(BerlLeben_1901-09).JPG

Paul Matschie, Verhandlungen des V. Internationalen Zoologen-Congresses zu Berlin, 12.-16 August 19(1902), opposite page 1144: via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/32465114

illustration by Donald Reginald Rosevear (November 28, 1900-January 17, 1986); D.R. Rosevear, The Carnivores of West Africa (1974), Plate 3 Senegal, Hausa and Crested Genets
Donovan Reginald Rosevear 1900-1986; British Museum (Natural History) Department of Zoology [Mammals] Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History): CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Genetta-thierry-rose.jpg; CC BY-NC-3.0, via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/carnivoresofwest00rose/page/n210/mode/1up; CC BY-NC-4.0, via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8726355

Zoological and Botanical Gardens, Pilsen (Czech: Plzeň), western Bohemia, western Czech Republic: Николай Усик / http://paradoxusik.livejournal.com, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Genetta_thierryi_Plzen_zoo_02.2011.jpg

Kapsiki Peak, volcanic plug rising 4,016 feet (1,224 meters) in Mandara Mountains in Cameroon's Far North Province: Amcaja, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rhumsiki_Peak.jpg

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Atakora Mountains, northwestern Benin, close to entrance in Batia to Pendjari National Park: Martin Wegmann (Wegmann), CC BY SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Atakora_Benin_Batia.jpg

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