civet

For smaller omnivorous and carnivorous mammals such as masked palm civets or elephant shrews, nectar can act as a high-calorie supplement.

The samples from the stall that contained the coronavirus also contained DNA from a variety of animals, including dogs, rabbits, hoary bamboo rats, Malayan porcupines and masked palm civets.

The results identify a shortlist of animals – including racoon dogs, civets and bamboo rats – as potential sources of the pandemic.

A virus in civets and raccoon dogs sold in marketplaces in southern China matched the one that sickened humans, and a virus later found in bats looked like its ancestor.

Those captive civets may only live two or three years, says Vincent Nijman, who directs wildlife trade research at Oxford Brookes University in the U.K.