Anatomical Assessments for Grey Mongoose Tongue by Scanning Electron Microscope (Herpestes edwardsii) in Iraq

The grey mongoose is a mongoose species native to the West Asia and Indian subcontinent. It is listed as the Least Concern on the International unio‎n for Conservation of Nature Red List. The main objective of this study was to identify the different categories of papillae found in the tongue of Iraqi grey mongoose to investigate the possible differences with other grey mongoose species. This study investigated the position and shape of the Iraqi grey mongoose tongue papillae. A total of six healthy grey mongooses were examined by Scanning Electron Microscope. The results revealed the existence of five different kinds of papillae on the dorsal surface of the tongue in grey mongooses that included 1) Filiform (sharp and cylindrical shape in the cranial and middle part of the tongue), 2) Multifilament (distributed in the cranial third and caudal part), 3) Circumvallate (positioned caudally in the cranial and rear regions of the tongue), 4) Conical (identified in the proximal to the circumvallate), and 5) Fungiform (located in the middle and caudal portions of the tongue). The present study highlights different shapes and distributions of all types of lingual papillae in the Iraqi grey mongoose.