Do you know the Tanii name for this animal ? I asked a few people in Ziro, but couldn't get a conclusive answer. It's the Yellow-bellied Weasel (Mustela kathiah), a high dwelling mammal species found throughout the Himalayas, usually at an elevation of 1800 m and above, though in winter it may occasionally come down to lower than 1000 m. It is a carnivorous species, capturing mostly mice and rats, but also occasionally eating birds and small mammals. In some areas of Nepal Yellow-bellied weasels are kept as pets to chase and catch rodents inside houses.
The picture below was taken at a market in Ziro. A specimen of Yellow-bellied Weasel, probably caught in a trap, was offered for sale, along with byako (Solanum torvum) and a variety of orange fruit.
Source: Rita Willaert's collection on Flickr.
Maybe a clue: I was told that this animal is called KEKKA in Adi (Padam dialect).
22 comments:
This is nyokhe. Lives on the ground as well as on trees. Can kill even bigger animals and carry it up the trees.
@kanno
Am confused aku !! Do its name(pronounce/tone) similar/different to that of "black panther/jaguar(NYOKHE)"-
http://learntanii.blogspot.com/search/label/WILD%20ANIMALS
Great work!! Let us save Tanii indeed.
Please refer here http://irs.ub.rug.nl/ppn/310130360 for comparison with Galo language.
Great work!!
Let us save Tanii indeed. For reference/comparison with Galo Language please visit here - http://irs.ub.rug.nl/ppn/310130360
Lwwbo Riba
@ Lwwbo,
Thanks for the link. I'm not too sure, but I think this animal is called `kvkoo in Galo.
"`kvkoo" like "kvlww" (red squirrel)which comes from "Takv"(squirrel)is also called "`paako `taww". I am not sure if this is the picture of this animal.
Lwwbo
"kvkaa/ `kvkv" in Galo is a black squirrel (kaa/`kv from `yakaa/`yakv meaning "black")
Lwwbo
I would again like to mention that `kvkoo and kvlww are much larger in size than that of a squirrel.
Lwwbo
The "koo" in `kvkoo is from the word `paako `taww.
Please refer to Chapter 17 of the site I 've given for the details of Galo Script adopted which I have used for writing the names of the animals.
Lwwbo
@to Lwwbo,
Thanks for your informative comments, I'll forward them to M. Post. Keep visiting.
Could it be 'tangu sie'
@ Tutho,
Only native Tanii speakers can say... I myself never came across that word. But the first syllable may well be 'ta-', as it is for several other smaller mammal species such as squirrels, bats, etc.
after discussion with a friend regading the word 'tangu sie' i heard the word pronounced as 'ta.. (ng) see', the 'ng' is a nasal sound not distinctly pronounced with the sound 'ng'.
lwwbo
@ Lwwbo,
"ta(ng)see", is it Tanii or Galo word ? Sorry I'm bit confused...
It is not a Galo Word. My discussion was with a tanii friend.
lwwbo
ok, thanks.
Black panther should be a different species. Panther and Leopard are synonymous. Spots on the panther are in half moon shape where as spots on Jaguar are of almost circular. Jaguar is no more in India, however the Govt. of India is trying bring recreate it through genetic engineering. I am also confused between 'hogya' and 'hogya takar'. Can somebody throw more light on this account?
Millo Tago
In Galo 'HOMEN/HONYO'(homen/`hoxo)stands for big cat family. Black pahther or the locally found large black tree climbing cat is called 'NYOKE (`xokv, '`xo' from `hoxo and 'kv' from `yakv-black).
The local clouded leopard is called 'HIIBO NYOREE'('hwwbo `xoree).'`hwwbo'-tree and 'ree' for the cloudlike stripes.
The local leopard is called 'HOMEN TAKAR'.
- hogya : clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa)
- hogya taker : common leopard (Panthera pardus). It is called 'hogya taker' ('star panther') because it has a spotted fur, whereas hogya is marked with large irregular ellipses.
- nyokhe : black panther (Panthera pardus). Scientifically speaking, leopard and black panther describe the same animal species, but of different coloration. In Arunachal, Black panther is only a black color variant of the common leopard.
- Jaguar (Panthera onca) is not found in Asia but only in South America. It's the Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) which was once common throughout India, though not in the NE region.
Great post..
Work from home India
We (Galo) call it whww-kooxo (ihi-konyo), which is often confused with mongoose. This animal often creates danger for our poultry in village especially when the periphery of the house is covered with bushes. They can even kill big hen.
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