It's a what? It’s a binturong! Looking like something Dr. Seuss might have dreamed up, a binturong has a face like a cat's and a body like a bear's, long, shaggy black hair, stiff white whiskers, and a prehensile tail that’s as long as its body. Binturongs are also called bearcats, but that name is rather misleading since these animals are not related to bears OR cats. Instead, they are related to civets and fossas but look more like gigantic dust mops and smell like a freshly made batch of popcorn!

The hair coloration on binturongs can vary from black to brown with white, silver, or rust on the tips, which gives the binturong a grizzled appearance. Binturongs are classed as carnivores but eat mostly fruit. Their long ear tufts and reddish-brown eyes give them an endearing appearance but one that isn’t seen very often in the wild by humans.

Binturongs spend most of their time in the trees, but they usually have to climb down to get from tree to tree, since they are not nearly as acrobatic as monkeys. Padded paws and long claws help them grasp branches. Their body is low to the ground, like a bear or a human. They walk flat-footed, and, when waddling on the ground, they tend to amble much like a bear does. Unlike a bear or human, though, binturongs can turn their ankles 180 degrees so their claws can still grip when climbing down a tree headfirst.

A binturong’s tail is very thick and muscular at the base, with the last third of it prehensile to be used like an extra hand when climbing around in the treetops. A leathery patch at the tip helps the tail grip the branches a binturong climbs through. Binturong youngsters have been seen hanging upside down while completely supported by their tail, but adults are a bit too heavy to do this without using a paw or two for an extra grip. The binturong is the only Old World mammal and one of only two carnivores with a prehensile tail (the other is the kinkajou).

Binturongs can swim fairly well and have good vision day or night, and so can be active at any hour they choose.