Kaokoveld Slender Mongoose

The Angolan slender mongoose is a small, slender species with a long, well-furred tail. Males have a head-and-body length averaging 343 mm (13.5 in) with females smaller at 310 mm (12.2 in), the tail in each case being about 340 mm (13.4 in) in length. The skull is moderately broad and the ears are neat and rounded. This mongoose has several different colour forms; most individuals are black or deep brown, but some individuals are reddish-brown to yellowish-orange, the underparts being yellowish-orange and the tapering tail being a similar colour but with a black tip.

The Angolan slender mongoose is endemic to southern Africa, its range including southwestern Angola and northwestern Namibia. The animals in Namibia are dark brown or black, while those in Angola are mostly the pale morph. Where the two types abut, in the vicinity of the Cunene River, there are no intermediate colour forms. The natural habitat of this mongoose is kopjes, rocky outcrops and areas with large granite boulders, and the woodlands and slopes surrounding these features.

This mongoose is diurnal and largely solitary, with a home range of up to 4 km2 (1.5 mi2) containing several dens. The ranges often overlap with the neighbouring mongoose. The diet consists largely of insects, solifuges, scorpions, lizards, snakes, small birds and mammals. The mongoose is itself preyed on by larger predators such as the African hawk-eagle.