African Civet Hunting

The nocturnal African civet, Civettictis civetta, is often called a 'civet cat'. They look a bit like a cat with an elongated snout but they are not cats in fact, but are members of the Viverridae family.

There are several species of civet found in Africa and Asia and they were popularly hunted for their perineal musk secretion which was highly valued as a fragrance and stabilizing agent for perfume. Nowadays this has largely been superceded by synthetic musk or is obtained by scraping the glands of captive animals.

African Civet Trophy Minimums

Only SCI have trophy African civet in their record book.

Where To Hunt Civet

Civet are generally hunted as an animal of opportunity while on a hunt for other species.

You can hunt a civet on a savanna hunt in Cameroon or CAR, on a 16 and 21 day licence in Tanzania and on hunts in Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Since 2010, there was a moratorium on small cat hunting in Mozambique which includes civet.

Civet Hunting Prices

• If you want to hunt the Group C civet on your Cameroon savanna hunt the trophy fee will be between 250 and 350 Euros. In CAR the civet trophy fee is 500 Euros.
• In Tanzania, the Government trophy fee for civet is US$200 but after the anti-poaching/Community Development fees are added, you'll be paying a trophy fee of around US$450.
• If you find a civet to hunt in Zimbabwe the trophy fee can range from US$200 up to a hefty US$1000.
• In Zambia, the civet trophy fee will be around US$800 to US$900, including the licence fee where necessary.
• If you are really keen to successfully hunt a civet and not leave it to chance while hunting other animals, you may prefer to do a special nocturnal species hunt in South Africa, where the outfitter is geared up for the civet, possibly keeping an area regularly baited where the nocturnal anmals are used to coming. As you are not allowed to hunt at night or use a spotlight unless hunting leopard and hyena in South Africa, the outfitter will need to apply for a special permit to hunt civet at night. This permit cost may be added to your hunt price. In South Africa, civet trophy fees go from US$500 to US$950.
• Civets are not on many Namibia trophy lists but where you can hunt them, the trophy fee is around US$350 to US$450.

Civet Hunting Methods

• Being a mostly nocturnal animal, you may be lucky to see one to hunt if it is out and about in the early morning or at dusk. You might also disturb one who is sleeping in dense vegetation during the day.
• As mentioned before, if civet is a priority animal for you, it is best to find a hunting outfitter who specialises in small nocturnal animal hunting and may have a bait area which civets visit occasionally.

A Good Civet Trophy

• Any big civet will be a good trophy. Frequently the females may be bigger and heavier than the males, so in countries where it is not permitted to hunt any female animals, talk to your PH about this before hunting one as it is very hard to tell the difference between a male and female civet.

Civet Hunting Shot Placement

• Aim for the chest with a solid round.

Male Civet Vital Statistics

• Shoulder Height: 16" / 40cm
• Weight: 15-44lbs / 7-20kg

Civet Habitat And Requirements

• African civets live in savanna and forest where there is plenty of cover and nearby water. They eat practically anything - small vertebrates, invertebrates, eggs, carrion and vegetable matter.

Civet Social Structure

• The civet is solitary except during the mating season.

Civet Gestation Period

• After a gestation period of 2 - 3 months, civets produce between 1 - 4 offspring.

Civet Gender Identification

• There is no discernable differences between male and female civets. Size does not indicate the gender.
• Both sexes have the same fur markings of stripes, spots and blotches in deep brown to black and a dorsal crest which it raises if it feels threatened.

Civet Gallery

Civet Trophy Permits (2015)

Since 2004 there has been an embargo in place on importing all raw civet trophies or civet products which includes the African civet. See CDC Civet Embargo

• Contact: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Mailstop A-46, 1600 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30333 Tel: 404-718-2077 Fax: 404-718-2093 E-mail: importpermit@cdc.gov
• Fully-treated, taxidermied mounts of civets may be imported into the US.

Only civets from Botswana have a CITES restriction but they are not huntable there anyway.

Civet Trophy Taxidermy

Civets are popularly set up as full mounts with a habitat base. They also make quite striking full skin rugs.

Hunting Other African Animals

Big Five Hunting

• African Buffalo
• African Lion
• African Leopard
• African Elephant
• Rhino

Waterside Hunting

• Hippo
• Crocodile

Other Plains Game Hunting

• Giraffe
• Zebra

Spiral Horned Antelope Hunting

• Bushbuck
• Kudu
• Nyala
• Mountain Nyala
• Sitatunga
• Bongo
• Eland

Large Antelope Hunting

• Sable
• Roan
• Waterbuck
• Kob
• Lechwe
• Oryx / Gemsbuck
• Wildebeest
• Hartebeest
• Tsessebe / Topi

Medium Antelope Hunting

• Blesbok
• Bontebok
• Reedbuck
• Impala
• Gerenuk
• Springbok
• Rhebok
• Puku

Small Antelope Hunting

• Gazelle
• Duiker
• Dik-Dik
• Steinbok
• Grysbok
• Oribi
• Klipspringer
• Suni
• Bate's Pygmy Antelope

African Pig Hunting

• Warthog
• Bushpig
• Forest Hogs

Other Cat Hunting

• Cheetah
• Serval
• Caracal
• African Wildcat

Animals Of Opportunity

• Baboon
• Civet
• Genet
• Honey Badger (Ratel)
• Hyena
• Jackal
• Ostrich
• Porcupine
• African Fox
• Monkey