African civet Uganda is a large nocturnal carnivore found in most of Uganda’s forested and wooded areas, more commonly detected by its distinctive call and the strong-smelling latrines it establishes on trails than by direct sighting. The African civet is a large, long-legged animal with a black-and-white banded and spotted coat, a black face mask and a crest of hair along its back. It is related to genets and mongooses, not cats. It lives in forest, woodland and savannah across Uganda and is most often seen on night drives in Queen Elizabeth, Murchison Falls and Lake Mburo, or crossing tracks near Kibale and Bwindi after dark.

African Civet Uganda: Nocturnal Forest Animal Facts

Habits

Civets are solitary and nocturnal, foraging mainly on the ground. They eat insects, rodents, frogs, birds, eggs, carrion and lots of fruit, and they can eat foods that are toxic to many animals, such as some millipedes. They leave droppings at regular latrine sites, which are easy to find along paths and help researchers track them.

Civet musk

Civets produce a strong-smelling musk from glands near the tail, used to mark territory. This musk was once widely used in perfumes and is still collected from captive civets in some countries, a practice criticised on welfare grounds. Most modern perfumes use synthetic versions instead.

Where to see it

Night drives give the best chances; civets often walk along roads and tracks. The gorilla permit costs US$800, or US$600 in April, May and November. See our guides to night safari animals, night game drives, the genet and Queen Elizabeth.

Frequently asked questions

Distribution and Habits

The African civet is widespread across Uganda in forest, forest edge, woodland, and dense bush habitats. It is most commonly encountered in the national parks at night — on game drives after dark in Murchison Falls, Queen Elizabeth, and Kidepo Valley, or on night walks in forest areas. The civet is strictly nocturnal and highly secretive, spending the day in dense vegetation or rock crevices. It moves alone along established trails, stopping at regular latrine sites — called ‘civetries’ — to deposit faeces in communal scent-marking points that may have been used by many generations of civets.

Appearance

The African civet is cat-sized but is not related to true cats — it belongs to the Viverridae family, closer to mongooses. Its distinctive pattern of bold black spots and stripes on a grey body, a black face mask, and a black-and-white striped crest along the back that can be raised in alarm make it unmistakable. The perineal glands near the tail produce the musk-secretion that is historically the source of civetone, used in perfume manufacture.

Ecology and Diet

The African civet is one of Africa’s most omnivorous carnivores, eating small mammals, birds, eggs, reptiles, insects, fruit, and carrion with equal facility. This dietary flexibility allows it to thrive across a wide range of habitats.

Conservation Status

The African civet is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN and is common across sub-Saharan Africa. In Uganda it is widely distributed but rarely seen due to its nocturnal habits. Night drives in Uganda’s savannah parks occasionally produce civet sightings along tracks at the edge of woodland and grass.

African Civet and the Perfume Trade

The African civet has a long history of human exploitation for the musk produced by its perineal glands. Civetone, the main aromatic compound in civet musk, was historically used as a fixative in high-end perfumes and was among the most valuable animal products in the global luxury trade — Ethiopian farmers kept civets in captivity for centuries, extracting the musk by scraping the glands. Modern synthetic substitutes have replaced natural civet musk in the perfume industry, reducing but not eliminating the trade pressure. In Uganda, civets face mainly local hunting for bushmeat in areas where that practice persists, but national park populations are stable and not under significant commercial pressure.

The African civet is broadly distributed across Uganda’s woodland and forest zones and is one of the more regularly recorded nocturnal species on night drives in savannah parks. Its distinctive black-and-white face mask and spotted-and-banded body are immediately recognisable in spotlight beam. Civets are omnivores that will eat almost anything — millipedes, beetles, fruit, small vertebrates, and carrion — and are frequently found foraging along game drive tracks at night. Night drives in Murchison Falls National Park and Queen Elizabeth regularly produce civet sightings, and the species also appears in camera-trap records at lodges across Uganda.