Genetta victoriae
-----------------
English: Giant genet
German: Riesen ginsterkatze
French: Genette geante
Spanish: Gineta gigante
Distribution areas
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The giant genet and other species of
genet are found in Eastern and Southern
Africa. The individual species differ in
size and in detailed body coloration.
Description of the fur
---------------------- The surface structure
The skins are from 45 to 70 cm long and of the skin, 200x
the tail is about 40 to 60 cm long. The
thickness of the coat is from 10 to 20 mm and even more in some body areas.
The underfur layer is grey-brown in colour, and the tips of guard hairs are
light-grey but also dark-brown or even black in the spots. The spots are
elliptical in the shape and occur over the whole body. The tail has dark
rings. On the belly the spots are lighter and of a smaller size.
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Genetta victoriae
-----------------
English: Giant genet
German: Riesen ginsterkatze
French: Genette geante
Spanish: Gineta gigante
Structure of the hair
---------------------
The microscopic structure of the skin
surface is furrowed; the hair follicles are
narrow with straight edges, and contain
clusters of fibres.
The fine fur fibres are circular or oval
in cross-section with a diameter of 10 to The cuticular structure
28 µm. The cuticle is covered by of the fine fibres, 1000x
cornet-like scales in the lower part, and
by wavelike scales in the upper part of the shafts. The scale surface is
smooth and the margins are straight. These fibres have a wide, unbroken,
central-symmetrical shaped medulla of the uniserial ladder type, with an
amorphous infilling material.
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Genetta victoriae
-----------------
English: Giant genet
German: Riesen ginsterkatze
French: Genette geante
Spanish: Gineta gigante
The intermediate fibres have a circular,
an in the upper part of the shaft
elliptical cross-section with a diameter of
about 30 to 80 µm. The cuticle is even,
tile-like in the lower part, and wavelike
in other parts of the shaft. The scale
surface is smooth and scale margins are
straight. The medulla is wide, unbroken and
central symmetrical-shaped. The overall The cuticular structure
structure of the medulla is of the lattice of an intermediate hair, 1000x
type with and amorphous infilling material.
The guard hairs are 80 to 115 µm in diameter. These fibres are circular or
elliptical in cross-section. The cuticular scales are of the crenated,
tile-like type, or in lower part of the shaft also of the even, tile-like
type.
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Genetta victoriae
-----------------
English: Giant genet
German: Riesen ginsterkatze
French: Genette geante
Spanish: Gineta gigante
The scale surface is smooth, the scale
margins are crenated, or sometimes straight.
The medullary column occupies less than half
of the cross-section, so it is of the narrow
type. This medulla is unbroken and central
symmetrical shaped and is of the lattice
type with an amorphous detailed structure to
the infilling substance.
Longitudinal section
of a fine fur fibre, 2000x
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Genetta victoriae
-----------------
English: Giant genet
German: Riesen ginsterkatze
French: Genette geante
Spanish: Gineta gigante
Longitudinal section
of an intermediate fibre, 1000x
Numerical code for giant genet skin structure
---------------------------------------------
Surface of the skin: 3-4-3
Fine fur fibres: 1.2-7.5-1-1-2-1-1-1-8.6-10.28-8.15
Intermediate fibres: 1.2-7.2-1-1-2-1-1-8-8-30.81-15.25
Guard hairs: 1.2-4.2-1-2.1-3-1-1-8-8-80.115-25.35
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