The Mysterious Fossa of Madagascar

When King Julien of the famous animation "Madagascar" scared the wits out of his subjects upon mentioning the name of the "fossa" (he pronounced it as "foo-sa"), some people may think this is a mythical predator the characters have created. But the fossa is indeed considered in Madagascar as the greatest mysterious predator with a face of a mongoose and a body of a puma.

It is indeed mysterious because the fossa is equipped with a long tail helpful in maneuvering its whole body that lets it move swiftly from tree to tree. Because of this agility, scientists have not yet fully understood the creature due to lack of observation for research of this animal in the wild. Fossas are also known to move away from the human population as far as possible. Due to the growing population of humans, fossas are now known to decline in number in as little as 2,000 more or less.

But humans aside, the lemurs have enough reason to be scared because the fossa is known to choose them as its favorite of all. It also preys on other native creatures like rodents, reptiles, or mammals even as big as wild pigs. It is a relative of the mongoose which can grow up to 6 feet and can weigh up to 26 pounds.