Binturong
Arctictis binturong (Raffles, 1822)
The binturong (Arctictis binturong), also called the bearcat or Asian bearcat, is a mammal of the order Carnivora in the family Viverridae, subfamily Paradoxurinae. It is a medium-sized, nocturnal and arboreal omnivore with a representative adult body mass of 9.9 kg and values up to 13 kg, and its recorded habitat is shrubland.
Quick facts about the binturong
Gestation lasts 92 days, litters average 2.5 young, there are 2 litters per year, and sexual maturity comes at 2.4 years. The binturong is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, an IUCN threatened category.
- Weight
- 9.88 kg – 13 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 24.3 years – 27.2 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Omnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- shrublandsrc for Habitat
- Gestation
- 84 days – 98 dayssrc for Gestation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2.5src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 2.3 years – 2.53 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 2src for Litters or clutches a year
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Arborealsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Vulnerable (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the binturong
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
Where does the binturong live?
Not recorded
What is the binturong?
The binturong (Arctictis binturong) (; bin-TURE-ong, BIN-ture-ong), also known as the bearcat, is an arboreal viverrid native to South and Southeast Asia. It is the only species in the genus Arctictis, and it is divided into nine subspecies. It has long, thick hair, and is primarily dark in appearance, but can also have a whitish speckled pelage. It is unique in morphology with its popcorn-scented musk glands, and its long, bushy, prehensile tail.
The binturong is an omnivore, feeding on plants, insects, and smaller animals. It is primarily nocturnal, but also exhibits crepuscular behaviour. Females are able to enact delayed implantation, where a fertilized egg is not attached to the uterine walls until external conditions are ideal. The major threats to the binturong include habitat loss and forest degradation, as well as illegal hunting and trading. It has been assessed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.
From the Wikipedia article “Binturong” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Binturong&oldid=1384698497), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the binturong endangered?
The binturong is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List: it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Vulnerable species.
How is the binturong classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderCarnivora
- familyViverridae
- genusArctictis
- SpeciesArctictis binturong (Raffles, 1822)
Synonyms Viverra binturong
Other names and names in other languages (27)
- Asian bearcatEnglish
- BearcatEnglish
- BearcatEnglish
- قط دبيArabic
- بنتورونغArabic
- বিণ্টুৰংAssamese
- MarderbärGerman
- BinturongoEsperanto
- ManturónSpanish
- binturongiFinnish
- BinturonkiFinnish
- בינטורונגHebrew
- BinturungIndonesian
- Gatto orsinoItalian
- ビントロングJapanese
- 빈투롱Korean
- Musang BinturongMalay
- MårbjørnNorwegian Bokmål
- BjørnekattNorwegian Bokmål
- BeermarterDutch
- binturong orientalnyPolish
- БинтуронгRussian
- கரடிப்பூனைTamil
- หมีขอThai
- БінтуронгUkrainian
- 熊狸Chinese
- 熊貍Chinese
Relatives of the binturong
Other species in the same family Viverridae.
Asian palm civet
Paradoxurus hermaphroditus
African civet
Civettictis civetta
Masked palm civet
Paguma larvata
Large Indian civet
Viverra zibetha
Common genet
Genetta genetta
Otter civet
Cynogale bennettii
CompareBinturong vs Asian palm civetBinturong vs African civetBinturong vs Masked palm civetBinturong vs Large Indian civet
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is a binturong?
The binturong is a mammal in the order Carnivora and the family Viverridae. It is also called the bearcat or Asian bearcat.
How heavy is a binturong?
An adult binturong has a representative body mass of 9.9 kg, with values up to 13 kg reported.
What does a binturong eat?
The binturong is an omnivore.
Is the binturong endangered?
The binturong is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, which is an IUCN threatened category.
How long does a binturong live?
The binturong has a lifespan of 24.3 years, with values up to 27.2 years reported.
How many young does a binturong have?
A binturong litter averages 2.5 young, with 2 litters per year after a gestation of 92 days.
When is a binturong active?
The binturong is nocturnal and arboreal, and its recorded habitat is shrubland.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · 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 · 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 · 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 · 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 · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · 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).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Binturong (Arctictis binturong). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/binturong
“Binturong (Arctictis binturong).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/binturong.
@misc{binturong_2026,
title = {Binturong (Arctictis binturong)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/binturong},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}