African Civet
African CivetAfrican CivetAfrican CivetAfrican Civet

African Civet

Civettictis civetta

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
20–30% · Possible
overall probability at Kafue National Park
8 Verified records at Kafue National Park
June Best month highest sighting rate
☀️🌙 Day & Night When it's active Active throughout day and night

The African civet (Civettictis civetta) is a large viverrid native to sub-Saharan Africa, where it is considered common and widely distributed in woodlands and secondary forests. It has been listed as least concern on the IUCN Red List since 2008. In some countries, it is threatened by hunting, and wild-caught individuals are kept for producing civetone for the perfume industry. The African civet is primarily nocturnal and spends the day sleeping in dense vegetation, but wakes up at sunset. It is a solitary mammal with a unique coloration: the black and white blotches covering its coarse pelage and rings on the tail are an effective cryptic pattern. The black bands surrounding its eyes closely resemble those of the raccoon. Wikipedia →

20–30% of wildlife watchers report a African Civet sighting in Kafue National Park, based on 8 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

Closest Relatives at Kafue National Park

Lion
VU

Lion

☀️ Diurnal Mammal

Panthera leo

60–70% · Likely
Leopard
VU Endemic

Leopard

☀️ Diurnal Mammal

Panthera pardus

40–50% · Likely
Banded Mongoose
LC

Banded Mongoose

☀️ Diurnal Mammal

Mungos mungo

30–40% · Possible
Spotted Hyena
LC

Spotted Hyena

☀️ Diurnal Mammal

Crocuta crocuta

30–40% · Possible
Painted Hunting Dog
EN

Painted Hunting Dog

☀️ Diurnal Mammal

Lycaon pictus

20–30% · Possible
Cheetah
VU

Cheetah

☀️ Diurnal Mammal

Acinonyx jubatus

20–30% · Possible
White-tailed Mongoose
LC

White-tailed Mongoose

☀️🌙 Day & Night Mammal

Ichneumia albicauda

Insufficient data
Slender Mongoose

Slender Mongoose

☀️ Diurnal Mammal

Galerella sanguinea

Insufficient data
African Wildcat
LC

African Wildcat

☀️🌙 Day & Night Mammal

Felis lybica

Insufficient data
Spotted-necked Otter
NT

Spotted-necked Otter

☀️ Diurnal Mammal

Hydrictis maculicollis

Insufficient data
Serval
LC

Serval

☀️🌙 Day & Night Mammal

Leptailurus serval

Insufficient data
Meller's Mongoose
LC

Meller's Mongoose

☀️🌙 Day & Night Mammal

Rhynchogale melleri

Insufficient data

📅 Monthly Probability

5–10
Jan
10–20
Feb
10–20
Mar
5–10
Apr
40–50
May
40–50
Jun
30–40
Jul
5–10
Aug
30–40
Sep
40–50
Oct
30–40
Nov
5–10
Dec

☀️🌙 When They're Spotted

Active throughout day and night · across all parks (global)

☀️🌙Day & Night
☀️🌙🌙12am6am12pm6pm12am

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is)  ·  parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Probability
1 Niokolo-Koba National Park 🇸🇳 Senegal
30–40%
2 Kafue National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
20–30%
3 Liwonde National Park 🇲🇼 Malawi
20–30%
4 South Luangwa National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
20–30%
5 Gorongosa National Park 🇲🇿 Mozambique
20–30%
6 Moremi Game Reserve 🇧🇼 Botswana
10–20%
7 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
5–10%
8 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
5–10%
9 Lower Zambezi National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
Insufficient data
10 Mana Pools National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
Insufficient data
11 Selous Game Reserve 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
12 Meru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
Insufficient data
13 Taï National Park 🇨🇮 Ivory Coast
Insufficient data
14 Kibale National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data
15 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data
16 Ruaha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
17 Mikumi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
18 Gonarezhou National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
Insufficient data
19 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
Insufficient data
20 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
Insufficient data
21 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
22 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
23 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
Insufficient data
24 Chobe National Park 🇧🇼 Botswana
Insufficient data
25 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
Insufficient data
26 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
Insufficient data
27 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
28 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a African Civet in Kafue National Park?

About 29% of wildlife watchers report a African Civet sighting in Kafue National Park, based on 8 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see African Civet in Kafue National Park?

June has the highest sighting rate for African Civet in Kafue National Park in our monthly data.

← Back to Kafue National Park