A grison (, ) is any mustelid in the genus Galictis.
Names
The generic name
Galictis joins two Greek words: (γαλῆ, "
weasel") and (ἴκτις,
marten/weasel).
[ "New Latin, from Greek weasel + yellow-breasted marten". ]
Lewis and Short defines ictis (ἴκτις) simply as "a kind of weasel".[1] Brill's New Pauly likewise also notes that "ἴκτις/ may be a weasel"[2] Compare the word
Galidictis (a mongoose genus).
The common name is from a French word for "gray", a variant of , also meaning "gray".[ "French, from grison gray, from Middle French, from gris"]
Locally, in Spanish language, it is referred to as a huroncito (literally "little ferret") or grisón. In Portuguese, it is a furão.
Description
Grisons measure up to in length,
and weigh between . The lesser grison is slightly smaller than the greater grison. Grisons generally resemble a
honey badger, but with a smaller, thinner body. The
pelage along the back is a frosted gray with black legs, throat, face, and belly. A sharp white stripe extends from the forehead to the back of the neck.
Habitat
They are found in a wide range of habitats from semi-open shrub and woodland to low-elevation forests. They are generally terrestrial, burrowing and nesting in holes in fallen trees or rock crevices, often living underground. They are
omnivorous, consuming fruit and small animals (including mammals). Little is known about grison behaviour for multiple reasons, including that their necks are so wide compared to their heads, that has made radio tracking problematic.
Evolution
Extant species
Fossils
Grisons first appeared in South America during the early
Pleistocene about 2.5 million years ago. They may be descended from the fossil genera
Trigonictis and
Sminthosinus, which lived in North America during the mid to late
Pliocene.
There are at least three known fossil species, all of which were found in
Argentina:
[
]
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† Galictis hennigi
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† Galictis sanandresensis
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† Galictis sorgentinii
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Nowak, Ronald M. (2005). Walker's Carnivores of the World. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press
