A declining Indochinese endemic

Owston’s Civet © Matt Maran

Owston's Civet Chrotogale owstoni Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

Owston’s Civet

Owston’s Civet is only found in Lao PDR, Vietnam and a small part of southern China. It is declining throughout its range, mainly because of the commercial trade in wildlife, which includes civets. Much of this trade is illegal.

Why is Owston’s Civet going extinct?

  • A civet being cooked on a spit in Hanoi, Vietnam

    Demand for wild meat

    Wildlife, including civets, are traded for wild meat, often legally. This is eaten as a luxury in urban towns and cities in Asian countries, particularly in Vietnam and China. Civets form a significant part of the commercial widlife trade.

  • A collection of wire snares confiscated in Pu Mat National Park, Vietnam

    Snaring inside protected areas

    The demand for wild meat drives hunting for wildlife. Much of the hunting in South-east Asia occurs inside protected areas, using snares and other types of traps. Tens of thousands of snares are illegally set inside the region’s protected areas, with devastating impacts.

  • An Owston's Civet Chrotogale owstoni caught in a snare trap in Laos

    Owston's Civets are being snared

    Snares are indiscriminate and will capture anything that is on the ground and over 500 grammes in weight. Anything that is caught is sold into the illegal wildlife trade - including Owston’s Civets.

What are the priorities for Owston’s Civet conservation?

  • Owston's Civet Chrotogale owstoni in captivity in Cuc Phuong National Park, Vietnam

    Protect wild populations

    Owston’s Civets live in a part of the world where protected areas have failed to protect wildlife. For wild populations to persist there needs to be better managed, governed and resourced protected areas. Snaring needs to be urgently addressed across South-east Asia.

  • A civet being cooked on a spit in Hanoi, Vietnam

    Eliminate demand for wild meat

    The demand for wild meat is one of the main drivers of illegal snaring for civets inside protected areas. The demand for civets needs to be eliminated.

  • Common Palm Civets in a wild meat or civet coffee farm in Vietnam

    Close down civet farms

    Civets are kept in commercial facilities for meat and civet coffee production. Wild civets are caught to restock these facilities. They are also a public health risk; civets transmit and carry zoonotic diseases such as SARS. These facilities need to be closed.

  • Captive bred Owston's Civets in the U.K.

    Conservation breeding

    Conservation breeding is needed as insurance against extinction and to support recovery efforts. We need to urgently increase the numbers we have in captivity; some wild populations will not recover without this support.

Useful resources

 

  • Willcox et al. 2019. Conservation strategy for Owston’s Civet Chrotogale owstoni 2019 - 2029. Hanoi, Vietnam. (English version) Learn more

  • Willcox et al. 2019. Conservation strategy for Owston’s Civet Chrotogale owstoni 2019 - 2029. Hanoi, Vietnam. (Vietnamese version) Learn more

Partners

 
Save Vietnam's Wildlife, Mandai Nature and Wild Planet Trust are all important partners for Owston's Civet conservation
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