These huge, hairy fruit-eaters, are not bears or cats, they're an obscure tree-living member of the civet family.

Statistics
Weight: 9-14kg Length: body 60-96cm, tail up to 1m

Physical description
The binturong has a coarse coat of long, dull black hair, with a slightly grey hue to the head. A muscular, prehensile tail allows movement in its environment, with the ability to walk upside down along branches. This is aided by long curved claws.

Distribution
Found in southeast Asia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Sumatra, Java and Borneo.

Habitat
The binturong lives in the canopy of tropical rainforest.

Diet
As they are omnivorous, a binturong will eat fruit as well as carrion and whatever small birds and rodents it can catch.

Behaviour
Mostly nocturnal, they are playful creatures, enjoying swimming and seen to catch prey by leaping high in the air to land on it. The binturong has highly developed senses of smell, hearing and vision enabling it to move freely through the canopy, and identify scent-marked territory.

Reproduction
Old enough to reproduce at two years, most litters are of one or two young (occasionally up to 6), born following a 92 day gestation period.

Conservation status
Although not listed in the IUCN Red List, the binturong is a rare sighting.

Records
The largest member of the civet family, which contains the mongoose and the meerkat.