Mongoose | Species & Facts | Britannica

Natural history

Mongooses live in burrows and feed on small mammals, birds, reptiles, eggs, and occasionally fruit. A number of mongooses, especially those of the genus Herpestes, will attack and kill venomous snakes. They depend on speed and agility, darting at the head of the snake and cracking the skull with a powerful bite. Mongooses are bitten occasionally; however, they possess a glycoprotein that binds to proteins in snake venom, deactivating them and making them harmless.

Britannica Quiz Wild Words from the Animal Kingdom Vocabulary Quiz

A number of species are noted for their peculiar habit of opening eggs as well as other food items with hard shells (crabs, mollusks, and nuts). The animal stands on its hind legs and hits the egg against the ground. Sometimes it carries the egg to a rock and, standing with its back to the rock, throws the egg between its legs and against the rock until the shell is broken. Early reports of this behaviour met with skepticism but have been verified by other observers. The Malagasy narrow-striped mongoose (Mungotictis decemlineata) exhibits the same behaviour but lies on its side and uses all four feet to toss the egg.

Most species are active during the day and are terrestrial, although the marsh mongoose (Atilax paludinosus) and a few others are semiaquatic. Some mongooses live alone or in pairs, but others, such as the banded mongoose (Mungos mungo), dwarf mongooses (genus Helogale), and meerkats, live in large groups. Litters usually consist of two to four young.

Some species, mainly the Javan mongoose (Herpestes javanicus) but also the Indian gray mongoose, were introduced to numerous islands, including Mafia Island (off the coast of East Africa), Mauritius, and those of Croatia, Hawaii, and Fiji. Originally intended to help control rodents and snakes, these introductions were disastrous, because the mongooses severely depleted the populations of native fauna. Because of their potential destructiveness, importation of all mongooses into the United States is strictly regulated.

Related Topics: meerkat Do Mongooses Make Good Pets? tool use Galidiinae Herpestidae (Show more) On the Web: ABC listen - The Science Show - Change in mongoose mating behaviour (Mar. 03, 2026) (Show more) See all related content