NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Egyptian Mongoose
Herpestes ichneumon (Linnaeus, 1758)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon), also known as ichneumon (), is a mongoose species native to the tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands of Africa and around the Mediterranean Basin in North Africa, the Middle East and the Iberian Peninsula. Whether it is introduced or native to the Iberian Peninsula is in some doubt. Because of its widespread occurrence, it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Wikipedia contributors, Egyptian mongoose; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T06:02:31.109286+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Herpestes ichneumon (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Name authority
- (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Common name
- Egyptian Mongoose
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Carnivora
- Family
- Herpestidae
- Genus
- Herpestes
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderCarnivora Bowdich, 1821
- suborderFeliformia Kretzoi, 1945
- familyHerpestidae Bonaparte, 1845
- subfamilyHerpestinae Bonaparte, 1845
- genusHerpestes Illiger, 1811
- speciesHerpestes ichneumon (Linnaeus, 1758)
Close classified relatives
No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Herpestes ichneumon angolensis Bocage, 1890 Bocage, 1890 | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon cafra (Gmelin, 1788) (Gmelin, 1788) | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon widdringtonii Gray, 1842 Gray, 1842 | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon centralis (Lönnberg, 1917) (Lönnberg, 1917) | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon funestus (Osgood, 1910) (Osgood, 1910) | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon ichneumon (Linnaeus, 1758) (Linnaeus, 1758) | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon numidicus (F. Cuvier, 1834) (F. Cuvier, 1834) | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon parvidens (Lönnberg, 1908) (Lönnberg, 1908) | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon sabiensis Roberts, 1926 Roberts, 1926 | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon sangronizi Cabrera, 1924 Cabrera, 1924 | synonym |
| Herpestes ichneumon mababiensis Roberts, 1932 Roberts, 1932 | synonym |
| Viverra ichneumon Linnaeus, 1758 Linnaeus, 1758 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Europe & Northern Asia (excluding China)
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=621893 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3L2WF. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.