Red List of South African Species

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Least Concern (LC)
Assessors: Emmanuel Do Linh San Julia Zemouche Zimkitha Madikiza Anthony Maddock Mike Perrin Michael Mills
Contributors: Claire Relton
Reviewers: Emmanuel Do Linh San Julia Zemouche Zimkitha Madikiza Anthony Maddock Mike Perrin Michael Mills

Rationale (Changed due to Same category and criteria)

The Slender Mongoose is listed as Least Concern as it is common and widespread in a variety of habitats (including human modified landscapes), there are no major threats that could cause rapid population decline, and it is present in several protected areas (notably Kruger National Park and the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park) across its distribution range within the assessment region.

Regional population effects: Dispersal is likely between regions, as this species’ range is continuous across southern Africa from northern South Africa to Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique south of the Zambezi River. The Slender Mongoose is not limited by fences, and is also present within a number of transfrontier reserves, including the Greater Mapungubwe Transfrontier Conservation Area.

Distribution

One of the most widely distributed African mongooses, ranging from Senegal in the west to the Red Sea coast of Sudan in the east and south to the Northern Cape in South Africa (Hoffmann & Taylor 2013). Bahaa-el-din et al. (2013) recently obtained the first records of Slender Mongoose in Gabon, > 350 km outside of its previous known range. Past records of this species on the Cape Verde archipelago are an error (Masseti 2010; Hazevoet & Masseti 2011) and are in fact based on confusion with occurrence on the mainland Cape Verde itself. Stuart (1981) mentions a museum record of this species from Mountain Zebra National Park, but this specimen is not mentioned in the studies of Watson and Dippenaar (1987) and Watson (1990), and the most southerly distribution limit is probably the far eastern part of the Eastern Cape in South Africa (Hoffmann & Taylor 2013). This species also occurs in Zanzibar (Stuart & Stuart 1998; Goldman & Winther-Hansen 2003). It ranges from sea level to 2,700 m asl in the Ethiopian Highlands (Yalden et al. 1996).

Within the assessment region, the Slender Mongoose occurs across all savannah habitats north of the Orange River, but is absent from montane grassland. This includes Limpopo, North West, Gauteng and Mpumalanga provinces, much of eastern KwaZulu-Natal Province, the central and northwestern areas of the Free State Province, along part of the east coast of the Eastern Cape Province, as well as Swaziland (Skinner & Chimimba 2005). In the Kalahari, it occurs especially amongst calcrete outcrops and not in the dunes (Mills et al. 1984).

Population trend

Trend

Slender Mongooses are among the most common mongooses in Africa. In the Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, population densities between 1975 and 1990 ranged from 3–6 individuals / km² (Waser et al. 1995). In the Kalahari, South Africa, based on data collected between 2007 and 2011, population density was around 1.6–2.0 adults / km² (B. Graw et al. unpubl. data). In Vernon Crookes Nature Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, Maddock (1988) estimated a density of 7.3 individuals / km². Considering the wide distribution of this species and a minimum average density of at least 0.1 individual / km², we estimate that there are well over 10,000 individuals in the assessment region.

Threats

There are no major threats to this species. As stated above, Slender Mongooses are locally used as bushmeat and in traditional medicine. Although wildlife ranching and the private sector have possibly had a positive effect on this species due to the conservation and connection of suitable habitats (e.g. in the Waterberg), this small carnivore may be accidentally caught as bycatch in predator and rodent control programmes using poisons. It is however unlikely that these consumptive uses and accidental mortalities have a substantial effect on the population.

Uses and trade

Slender Mongooses have been recorded in bushmeat markets in West Africa (e.g. Colyn et al. 2004) and Cunningham and Zondi (1991) listed this species among those used in traditional medicine in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Conservation

This species is present in numerous protected areas across its range, notably in Kruger National Park and the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. No conservation interventions are currently deemed necessary within the assessment region; however, this species is likely to benefit from the expansion of protected areas to connect suitable habitat patches.

Recommendations for land managers and practitioners:
  • Create conservancies to protect and connect habitat.
Research priorities:
  • Monitoring subpopulations to detect trends across various land uses.
  • General studies on the biology and ecology of this species in different habitat types.
A team of researchers at the University of Fort Hare, University of South Africa and University of the Witwatersrand is currently studying the ecology and behaviour of the Slender Mongoose in Telperion Nature Reserve (Mpumalanga). The project aims to describe the spatial behaviour, habitat use, activity patterns, diet and use of latrines by this relatively unstudied mongoose. Contact details of the research coordinator: Prof. Emmanuel Do Linh San, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Fort Hare, Alice, 5700, South Africa. Email: Edolinhsan@ufh.ac.za. Website: http://www.ascaris.org.

Encouraged citizen actions:
  • Report sightings on virtual museum platforms (for example, iSpot and MammalMAP), especially outside protected areas.

References 

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