CreatureData

Yellow mongoose

Cynictis penicillata (G. Cuvier, 1829)

LCLeast Concernmammals

The yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata) is a species in the family Herpestidae, order Carnivora. Recorded adults weigh 598.5 g to 836 g and live up to 15.2 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata)
Photo: Giles Laurent · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the yellow mongoose

Weight
598.5 g – 836 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
15.2 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Invertivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
15.2 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Gestation
42 days – 57 dayssrc for Gestation
Young per litter or clutch
1.8 – 2src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
2 yearssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
2src for Litters or clutches a year
Active
By day (diurnal)src for Active
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the yellow mongoose live?

Not recorded

What is the yellow mongoose?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata), sometimes referred to as the red meerkat, is a member of the mongoose family. It averages about 0.45 kg (1 lb) in weight and about 510 mm (20 in) in length. It lives in open country, semi-desert scrubland and grasslands in Angola, Botswana, South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. It is the only species in the genus Cynictis.

From the Wikipedia article “Yellow mongoose” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yellow_mongoose&oldid=1351399048), 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 yellow mongoose endangered?

The yellow mongoose is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the yellow mongoose classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classMammalia
  4. orderCarnivora
  5. familyHerpestidae
  6. genusCynictis
  7. SpeciesCynictis penicillata (G. Cuvier, 1829)

Synonyms Cynictis penicillata brachyura, Cynictis penicillata cinderella, Cynictis penicillata intensa, Cynictis penicillata kalaharica, Cynictis penicillata karasensis, Cynictis penicillata lepturus, Cynictis penicillata ogilbyii, Cynictis penicillata pallidior, Herpestes penicillatus

Other names and names in other languages (36)
  • Bushy-tailed meerkatEnglish
  • Red meerkatEnglish
  • Yellow meerkatEnglish
  • GeelmeerkatAfrikaans
  • GeelmuishondAfrikaans
  • RooimeerkatAfrikaans
  • WitkwasmuishondAfrikaans
  • نمس أصفرArabic
  • Жоўты мангустBelarusian
  • mangusta liščíCzech
  • Gul mangustDanish
  • FuchsmangusteGerman
  • Κίτρινη ΜανγκούσταGreek
  • Mangosta amarillaSpanish
  • hiekkamangustiFinnish
  • Mangouste fauveFrench
  • La Mangouste FauveFrench
  • Mangouste jauneFrench
  • rókamangusztaHungarian
  • Mangusta giallaItalian
  • キイロマングースJapanese
  • 노랑몽구스Korean
  • 붉은미어캣Korean
  • GulmungoNorwegian Bokmål
  • RevemungoNorwegian Bokmål
  • Rode meerkatDutch
  • VosmangoesteDutch
  • Mangusta lisiaPolish
  • Mangustolisek afrykańskiPolish
  • Manguço‑amareloPortuguese
  • Желтый МангустRussian
  • พังพอนเหลืองThai
  • TshaganeTswana
  • moSweTswana
  • Мангуст жовтийUkrainian
  • 黃獴Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the yellow mongoose

Other species in the same family Herpestidae.

LC, Least Concern
Meerkat (Suricata suricatta)

Meerkat

Suricata suricatta

Herpestidae

CompareYellow mongoose vs MeerkatYellow mongoose vs Egyptian mongooseYellow mongoose vs Banded mongooseYellow mongoose vs Marsh mongoose

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the yellow mongoose?

An adult yellow mongoose weighs 598.5 g – 836 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the yellow mongoose endangered?

The yellow mongoose is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the yellow mongoose live?

The yellow mongoose has a recorded lifespan of 15.2 years.

How long is the yellow mongoose pregnant?

The recorded gestation period is 42 days – 57 days.

What kind of animal is the yellow mongoose?

The yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata) belongs to the family Herpestidae in the order Carnivora.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/yellow-mongoose

MLA

“Yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/yellow-mongoose.

BibTeX
@misc{yellow_mongoose_2026,
  title = {Yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/yellow-mongoose},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}