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{{Short description|Species of carnivore}}
{{speciesbox
| name = Greater grison
| status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Cuarón, A.D. |author2=Reid, F. |author3=González-Maya, J.F. |author4=Helgen, K. |date=2016 |title=''Galictis vittata'' |volume=2016 |page=e.T41640A45211961 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T41640A45211961.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref>
| image = Greater grison.jpg
|
| synonyms = ''Galictis allamandi'' Bell 1837
▲| genus = ''[[Galictis]]''
▲| binomial_authority = ([[Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber|Schreber]], 1776)
| range_map = Greater Grison area.png
| range_map_caption = Greater grison range
}}
The '''greater grison'''
==Description==
[[File:Galictis vittata 01 MWNH 346.jpg|thumb|Skull of a greater grison]]
The greater grison is a slender animal with short legs, a long neck, and a short, bushy tail. They are similar in appearance to the closely related [[lesser grison]], from which they can be most readily distinguished by their greater size, with a head-body length ranging from {{convert|45|to|60|cm}}. Adults weigh between {{convert|1.5|and|3.8|kg}} in the wild, but may become larger when reared in captivity.<ref name=Yensen2003>{{cite journal |author1=Yensen, E. |author2=Tarifa, T. | year = 2003 | title = ''Galictis vittata'' | journal = Mammalian Species |volume=727 | pages = 1–8 | doi = 10.1644/727|s2cid=198121748 }}</ref>
The back, flanks, top of the head, and the tail, are grizzled grey in color, while the rest of the body is much darker, and usually solid black. A narrow whitish stripe separates the darker and lighter fur on the head and shoulder, but not further back, where the two colors may, in some individuals, blur into one another. The tail is {{convert|14|to|20|cm}} long, and covered with bushy hair similar in color to that on the animal's back. The head is flattened and broad, with short, rounded ears, and dark brown to black eyes. The legs are muscular, with five webbed toes, each ending in a sharp, curved claw.<ref name=Yensen2003/>
==Distribution and habitat==
Greater grisons are native to North and South America, ranging from southern [[Mexico]] in the north, to central [[Brazil]], [[Peru]], and [[Bolivia]] in the south. They inhabit a wide range of forest and [[cerrado]] habitats, and are usually seen near rivers and streams. They are typically found at elevations below {{convert|500|m}}, but they may be found as high as {{convert|2000|m}} in some parts of the Bolivian Andes.<ref name=Yensen2003/> In some regions, they may also be found in cultivated areas, such as plantations and rice paddies.<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021" /> Four living, and one fossil subspecies are recognised:<ref name=msw3>{{MSW3 | id = 14001160}}</ref>
* ''Galictis vittata vittata'' – northern South America
* ''Galictis vittata andina'' – Peru and Bolivia
* ''Galictis vittata brasiliensis'' – Brazil
* ''Galictis vittata canaster'' – Central America and southern Mexico
* † ''Galictis vittata fossilis'' – [[Pleistocene]] Brazil<ref name=Yensen2003/>
==Behaviour==
Greater grisons are primarily [[Terrestrial animal|terrestrial]], although they can climb trees and swim well. They are mostly [[diurnality|diurnal]], and only occasionally active at night.<ref name=MoW1/> They live alone or in pairs, with [[home range]]s of at least {{convert|4.2|km2}}, and a very low population density, such that they are rarely encountered in the wild. They spend the night sleeping in cavities in hollow logs or beneath tree roots, or else in the abandoned burrows of other animals.<ref name=MoW1>{{cite book |editor=Wilson, D.E. |editor2=Mittermeier, R.A.|year=2009 |title= Handbook of the Mammals of the World, Volume 1: Carnivora |publisher= Lynx Edicions |location=Barcelona |pages= 636–637 |isbn= 978-84-96553-49-1}}</ref>
Little is known of their diet, although it consists largely of small vertebrates, such as fish, amphibians, birds, and other mammals.<ref name=Bisbal1986>{{cite journal | author = Bisbal, F.J. | year = 1986 | title = Food habits of some Neotropical carnivores in Venezuela (Mammalia, Carnivora) | journal = Mammalia | volume = 50 | issue = 3 | url=http://www.deepdyve.com/lp/de-gruyter/food-habits-of-some-neotropical-carnivores-in-venezuela-mammalia-qb9PxULypk | pages = 329–340 | doi=10.1515/mamm.1986.50.3.329| s2cid = 201699360 }}</ref> While hunting, they move in a zigzag pattern, making short bounds and occasionally stopping to look around with their heads raised and sniff the air. When moving more cautiously, they press their bodies close to the ground in a movement that has been described as 'snake-like'. They have been reported to respond to threats with a series of grunts that rise in intensity and frequency until they become rapid barks, and finally a single loud scream with their teeth bared.<ref name=Yensen2003/>
==Biology==
Like many other [[mustelid]]s, greater grisons possess anal [[scent gland]]s that secrete a yellowish or greenish [[musk]]. Although not especially noxious in comparison with that of other species, this can be sprayed at attackers, as well as being used to mark the grison's territory.<ref name=Yensen2003/>
Litters of up to four young are born from March to September, after a [[gestation]] period of 39 days. Newborn young weigh less than {{convert|50|g}}, and are initially blind, although with a short coat of hair already bearing the adult pattern. Their eyes open after two weeks, and they begin to eat solid food at three weeks, reaching the adult size in just four months.<ref name=MoW1/> They have lived for at least ten years in captivity.<ref name=Yensen2003/>
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Carnivora|M.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q283426}}
[[Category:Mustelinae]]▼
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:Mammals of Bolivia]]
[[Category:Carnivorans of Brazil]]
[[Category:Mammals of Colombia]]
[[Category:Mammals of Mexico]]
[[Category:Mammals of Venezuela]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Amazon]]
[[Category:Least concern biota of North America]]
[[Category:Least concern biota of South America]]
[[Category:Mammals described in 1776]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber]]
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