# Banded mongoose (*Mungos mungo*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/banded-mongoose  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The banded mongoose (Mungos mungo), also called the Zebra mongoose or Banded ichneumon, is a mammal in the family Herpestidae, subfamily Mungotinae, within the order Carnivora. It is a medium-sized mammal with an adult body mass of 1.925 kg, and it is a diurnal, terrestrial invertivore at the carnivore trophic level. Gestation lasts 61 days, litters average 2.68 young, females have 2 litters per year, and sexual maturity is reached at 344 days. Its lifespan is given as 12 years, with values up to 17.4 years, and the IUCN Red List assesses it as Least Concern, not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 1.33 kg – 1.93 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 12 years |
| Diet | Invertivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 17.4 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | forest, grassland |
| Gestation | 60.9 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2.68 |
| Age at maturity | 11.3 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 2 |
| Active | By day (diurnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Carnivora
- family: Herpestidae
- genus: Mungos
- species: *Mungos mungo* (Gmelin, 1788)

Synonyms: *Herpestes zebra*, *Mungos mungo adailensis*, *Mungos mungo bororensis*, *Mungos mungo caurinus*, *Mungos mungo colonus*, *Mungos mungo grisonax*, *Mungos mungo mandjarum*, *Mungos mungo marcrurus*, *Mungos mungo mungo*, *Mungos mungo ngamiensis*, *Mungos mungo pallidipes*, *Mungos mungo rossi*, *Mungos mungo senescens*, *Mungos mungo somalicus*, *Mungos mungo talboti*, *Mungos mungo zebra*, *Mungos mungo zebroides*, *Viverra mungo*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the banded mongoose?

The banded mongoose is a mammal in the family Herpestidae and the order Carnivora.

### How heavy is a banded mongoose?

An adult Banded mongoose weighs 1.925 kg, which places it in the medium size class.

### What does the banded mongoose eat?

The banded mongoose is an invertivore, placed at the carnivore trophic level.

### Is the banded mongoose endangered?

No. The IUCN Red List assesses the banded mongoose as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a banded mongoose live?

The banded mongoose has a lifespan of 12 years, with values up to 17.4 years reported.

### How many young does a banded mongoose have?

A banded mongoose has 2.68 young per litter and 2 litters per year, after a gestation of 61 days.

### Who named the banded mongoose?

The banded mongoose was named Mungos mungo by (Gmelin, 1788).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Banded mongoose (Mungos mungo). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/banded-mongoose