Food habits of the small Indian mongoose Herpestes auropunctatus in Kagoshima City, Japan

Abstract

The diet of the small Indian mongoose, Herpestes auropunctatus, which was discovered in 2009 to have colonized Kagoshima City, Japan, was studied by analyzing the contents of the digestive tracts and feces of 115 individuals to evaluate impacts on native animals. The diet of the mongoose was mainly insects, myriapods, crustaceans, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, birds, and fruits. Among consumed animal matter, insects occupied the highest frequency of occurrence (95%) throughout the year, and reptiles (21%) followed them. The seasonal relative occurrence frequencies in mammals and birds from winter until spring were higher than those in other seasons. This result shows that mammals and birds are also important food resources for mongoose in addition to insects and reptiles. Young H. auropunctatus, however, did not eat mammals and birds. Changes in fauna should be examined in the study areas to assess the recovery of native species as a result of mongoose extermination.