Analyzing Business Data with Excel

Colophon

The animal on the cover of Analyzing Business Data with Excel is the endangered Cynogale bennettii, more commonly known as the otter civet. These animals live in peninsular Malaysia, southern Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Despite the fact that they can be found across a vast geographic range, otter civets are scarce. They are nocturnal and are rarely found in the wild. Scientists believe their population has declined recently by at least 50 percent for a number of reasons, including the loss of their natural habitat to human development and water pollution.

Otter civets live on land, but are never too far from the water. They spend much of their time on the outskirts of streams and rivers and near swampy wetlands. Their feet are wide and webbed, and while they swim, flaps cover their ears and nostrils. However, their short tails lack special muscular power, and the webbing between their toes is only partially developed, so they are slow swimmers and cannot turn very quickly in the water. Surprisingly, they are very skilled climbers.

Their diet consists mostly of fish, frogs, mollusks, and crayfish. Birds and small mammals are other favored targets because they stop often at the edges of rivers and streams for a drink of water. Much like crocodiles and alligators, otter civets skim the surface of the water, with only their eyes and nostrils exposed, hunting for prey.

Otter civets resemble sea otters. Their fur is agouti—in other words, pale at the roots and much darker ...