Herpestidae Author Don E. Wilson Author Russell A. Mittermeier text 2009 2009-01-31 Lynx Edicions Barcelona Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 1 Carnivores 262 328 book chapter 3637 10.5281/zenodo.5676639 23dac009-8dc4-4021-a812-5f9db538c89c 978-84-96553-49-1 5676639 Family HERPESTIDAE (MONGOOSES) • Smallsized mammals with relatively uniform morphology characterized by a long face and body, short legs, small rounded ears, and long, tapering bushy tails. • 34 -151 cm. • Old World tropics throughout Asia and Africa, also Middle East and southern Europe. • Found in habitats ranging from open areas, such as deserts, savannah, and grasslands, to closed forest, over a wide elevation range, from lowlands to montane areas. • 15 genera, 34 species, at least 84 extant taxa. • 2 species Vulnerable; none Extinct since 1600.