Origin
Binturong or cat-bear is part of the order Carnivora, family Viveridae. It lives in tropical and subtropical areas of Asia. It can be found in India, Java island, Sumatra and Borneo at altitudes up to 400 meters. It is the only species of the genus to which it belongs. It was described by Thomas Stamford Raffles. The scientific name is "weasel-bear".
The population has decreased by 30% in the last 30 years. The same family includes fossa, civet or mongoose.
It can be found in literature or foreign literature under the names: the binturong, bearcat, bear cat, benturong, tenturun. We also saw the name bintorong.
Binturong Food
Cat-bear is an animal that eats with pleasure, a greedy animal. Because it moves slowly and is lazy just like a cat or a bear likes to eat and rest. One of the most pleasant moments is to do it quietly, without being disturbed. It is an omnivorous animal.
Its food consists of fruits and animals. It is a great consumer of fruits, tree shoots and various plants. When it comes to animals, it comes down from the tree and winds through the grasses and leaves. They hunt small animals, rodents, birds or insects. On the list of dishes is also fish. He is a good swimmer who dives after fish. He likes it so much that he eats it almost entirely.
The face of other cats is not strictly a hunter. Eat more fruit. Figs make up much of the diet. In captivity it is fed with fruit salad (peaches, bananas, apples, oranges, etc.)
Despite its relatively small size it has a very strong bite.
Binturong Appearance
The body length is 60 - 95cm and the weight is 10-14kg. The body is covered with long bushy fur of dark gray-black color.
The head is large, the ears are small and torunde, the snout is elongated and the nostril is black in color. The eyes are small dark in color. The legs are not long instead they are strong, ending with strong paws and large claws just like the bear. The tail of the prehensila (it can be helped by it) islong almost the size of the body. Females are 20% larger than males.
A. B. binturong-from Malacca to Thailand and Tenasserim;
A. B. albifrons – in the Himalayas, north of Myanmar and Indochina;
A. B. penicillatus-lives in Java;
A. B. whitei-lives in Palawan, Philippines;
A. B. pageli-lives in Borneo;
A. B. gairdneri-live in Thailand;
A. B. niasensis-lives in Sumatra;
A. B. kerkhoveni - lives in Bangka Island;
A. B. memglaensis-Yunnan province;
Binturong Behavior
These cute and very cute animals can be raised as pets because they can be tamed quite easily. He is appreciated for his intelligence and curiosity.
The binturong spends most of its time in the trees. They climb relatively easily using their claws. Moving in the trees is done slowly but surely. Unlike other species of animals that spend time in trees, they do not jump from one branch to another. Day prefers to sleep squatting on thick branches of trees.
He is a good climber and swimmer, when needed he dives into the water without any problem. Generally it moves slowly, the gait is heavy and pressed like a bear, hence the name cat-bear.
Males are very territorial. Both they and the females mask their territory through strongly smelling urine and feces. They are active animals both during the day and at night. He prefers more at night. Usually it does not move away from the "house" more than 5km. Males do not overlap their territories more than 50%.
Besides humans, the biggest natural enemies are tigers, leopards and pythons. Adults are hunted for meat, trade or medicine. Smaller prey animals are a danger to chicks lacking appliances. Normally the bear cat is shy and avoids noise, but if it is bullied it can be dangerous. It uses its powerful claws and bite to defend itself.
On hot days when even the shade is too hot it goes to cool in the waters of the rivers.
Binturong Breeding
Although they can mate throughout the year, the most frequent mating takes place in February – April and July – November. Estrus lasts 81 days. Females are fertile up to 15 years of age. She generally gives birth to two cubs, but can give birth to up to 6 Cubs.
The gestation period is three months. After this period the female gives birth to 1-3 cubs that she breastfeeds for two months. At birth they are born blind and deaf and depend on their mother. Unlike other feral cats, the male participates in raising offspring that reach sexual maturity at the age of 18-24 months.
In captivity binturong lives up to 22 years, in the Wild up to 10-15 years. The longest-lived binturong lived in captivity until the age of 25 and weighed 20 kg.
