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March 15, 2006

Fossa Gets The Lion's Share...

Sometimes I run across the oddest nature stories. This happens to be one of them. The imagery here is rather.... astonishing. This isn't the kind of story that normally would appear in an American paper, and so it's no real surprise that it's the readers of the Times in Britain that got to read this story.

Madagascar is home to a variety of strange critters, mammals especially. According to WildMadagascar.org, about 3/4 of all species living on the island are found nowhere else in the world. However, it's a rather small island covered in rainforest, many of the creatures there, like the Aye-aye, lemurs, mongooses, flying foxes, are suffering from habitat loss.

There's also a rather funny looking cat-like nocturnal critter called a Fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox). It's kind of a cross between a mongoose and a jaguar and it's the largest carnivore living on Madagascar. Despite its small size, folklore makes Fossae out are vicious creatures and locals are often afraid of them.

However, one characteristic of the lemur-munching Fossa is no myth - they're very well hung.

Whatever men and smirking wives may say about size not mattering, the fossa, a diminutive and distant cousin of the lion, clearly isn’t listening.

The creature, dubbed the Pink Panther of Madagascar, has the largest penis bone of all the cat-like species which, scientists believe, ensures that it is the real king of its island jungle.

An adult fossa is about 3½ft long and has a penis of about 7in, a sixth of its body length. If Man had the same ratio he would be 3ft tall and very smug.

...

The fossa, which weighs about 15lb (6.8kg), is the largest predator on Madagascar. Its main prey is the lemur but it will also catch hedgehogs, lizards and frogs.

...

It is endangered and only 2,500 are left in the wild but the island’s Government promised recently to help to protect the fossa by ensuring that a tenth of Madagascar has protected status by 2008.

More At: The Times: Lion's cousin really is a big cat

Well, it's no wonder a lemur's eyes are round as saucers.

Posted by sorsha at March 15, 2006 2:40 PM