NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Chinese Ferret-badger
Melogale moschata (Gray, 1831)
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 Chinese ferret-badger (Melogale moschata), also known as the small-toothed ferret-badger, is a member of the Mustelidae, and widely distributed in Southeast Asia. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List and considered tolerant of modified habitat.
The Chinese ferret-badger is densely distributed from Northeast India north to Central China south to northern Indochina. The Formosan ferret-badger (M. subaurantiaca) of Taiwan was formerly considered conspecific, but is now thought to be a distinct species.
Wikipedia contributors, Chinese ferret-badger; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:47:55.105111+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Melogale moschata (Gray, 1831)
- Name authority
- (Gray, 1831)
- Common name
- Chinese Ferret-badger
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Carnivora
- Family
- Mustelidae
- Genus
- Melogale
- 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
- suborderCaniformia Kretzoi, 1938
- familyMustelidae G. Fischer von Waldheim, 1817
- subfamilyHelictidinae Gray, 1865
- genusMelogale I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1831
- speciesMelogale moschata (Gray, 1831)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Melogale. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Formosan Ferret-badgerMelogale subaurantiaca (Swinhoe, 1862) | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cuc Phuong Ferret BadgerMelogale cucphuongensis Nadler, Streicher, Stefen, Schwierz & Roos, 2011 | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Bornean Ferret-badgerMelogale everetti (Thomas, 1895) | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Javan Ferret-badgerMelogale orientalis (Horsfield, 1821) | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Helictis moschata Gray, 1831 Gray, 1831 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
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=621924 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:3ZM88. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.