Civet cat: Fruit eater or SARS carrier?
Civet cat: Fruit eater or SARS carrier?
Christopher Bodeen, Associated Press, Shanghai, China
The poor civet cat is an animal with an image problem.
Nine months ago, they were banished from markets as suspected
spreaders of the SARS virus, only to be back on the menu after
the outbreak subsided.
Now they and other wild animals sold as food are again being
targeted for slaughter, as China seeks to block a re-emergence of
SARS. Some 10,000 have been ordered drowned, electrocuted and
incinerated by Saturday.
"People eat wild game for its supposed health-giving
properties, but the civet had come to be known as a damned
creature," said Hu Xueming, deputy general secretary of the
Guangzhou Food and Beverage Association.
The civets' unenviable fate seems sadly at odds with its
origins as a shy, fruit-eating tree dweller that just happens to
be prized as a delicacy in southern China.
Civets are mongoose-like animals found throughout Africa and
Asia and only distantly related to the common house cat. Some
species are ground dwelling and omnivorous, although the Chinese
species tied to the SARS virus, the masked palm civet, lives in
trees and eat oranges, papayas and mangos.
Members of the Viverridae family, civets have a pointy,
striped nose like a weasel, with a long, cat-like body and tail.
Most are between 2-5 kilograms, but can weigh up to 11 kilograms.
Civets are usually only served in specialty wildlife
restaurants called yewei, or "wild taste" in Chinese. Often
located in hilly rural areas on the edge of Guangzhou and other
southern cities, the restaurants keep live animals in cages,
awaiting the customer's selection, then slaughter them on the
spot.
Other than its distinctive flavor, civet meat is also credited
with having medicinal qualities. Consumers say civet flesh can
improve male virility, cure skin diseases, and improve other
ailments.
There are various forms of preparation, but the most popular
is to fry the meat with soy sauce adding bird's nest for flavor
and nutritional value, Hu said.
"You have to eat it while it's hot, because if it gets cold
the oil will congeal and you'll have a gamey smell," said Hu.
Other animals also suspected of carrying the SARS virus and
ordered slaughtered:
* Raccoon dogs, a primitive canine with racoon-like facial
markings.
* Ferret badgers, small, omnivorous nocturnal badgers.
* Hog badgers, larger badgers with protruding claws.
* Eurasian badgers, large badgers resembling small bears with a
prominent white stripe down their nose. Range from Ireland to
Japan.