A Common Palm Civet was caught in a cage trap near Kala Mandir on Sunday afternoon.
The forest department had set the trap off AJC Bose Road after receiving complaints from residents about the presence of a civet.
Civets are found across the city and are harmless but evoke fear among some people.
The forest department traps between 15 and 20 civets in Calcutta every month following complaints from people, said a senior official.
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Such civets are released in forested areas. The civet caught on Sunday — a young one, said a wildlife expert — would also be released in a forest.
Most civets are of the size of a cat but have a longer tail. They live in both rural and urban environments and feed on hens and birds. They also eat fruits and sweets.
Common Palm Civet and Small Indian Civet are the two kinds found in Calcutta. They are dark-coloured, nocturnal animals that can easily scale multi-storeyed buildings.
“The sight of a civet at night often evokes fear among urban people but they are actually shy animals and seldom attack people unless provoked,” said Subhankar Sengupta, conservator of forests (wildlife).
Civets are also killed out of the misplaced fear that they will harm humans.
Reporting by Subhajoy Roy;
pictures by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya