Page 84 - Present Day Wildlife_Float

Jackals are medium sized dog-like omnivorous predators. There are three* recognised extant
species, L. mesomelas the Black-backed jackal (Genus: Lupulella) found in Southern Africa and east-
ern coast of Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia, L. adusta the Side-striped jackal (Genus: Lupulella) found
in Central and southern Africa and C. aureus the Golden jackal (Genus: Canis) which inhabits, South-
eastern Europe, Middle East, western Asia,
and South Asia. All are members of the fami-
ly Canidae. All jackals are around, 40cm

tall, roughly 70 to 85cm in length (from the
tip of snout to tip of tail) and about 7 to 11 kg
in weight.

*The African wolf (Canis lupaster) once
believed to be a variant of the golden jackal is
now thought to be more closely related to the
grey wolf (Canis lupus) and the coyote (Canis
latrans).

Jackals are small to medium-sized ani-
mals; their nearest relative being the fox. The
three species are recognisable by their coats.
The Golden jackal has a yellowish or sandy-
coloured coat, the black-backed jackal, a
rusty red with a black back coat and the side-
striped jackal a greyish coat with a faded
stripe on each side. They all have long bushy
tails. They have a round head with a short
pointed snout and round piercing eyes at the
front with tall pointed ears. They have a lean
body build, clearly built for speed and their
long thin distance running legs can power
them along at 16 km/h over long distances and bursts of 64km/h over a short
distance. They are consummate runners. When foraging they rarely walk, con-
stantly winding and weaving through their territory at speed, resting only to
take stock of their surroundings. In a pack Jackals communicate, in loud
howls, growls, and cries. However, when in pairs the tone changes and the
sounds are less sharp and are more subdued.

The habitats each species resides vary; the golden jackal is found in val-
Black-backed jackal
leys, around canals, lakes, and beside river tributaries, while the side-striped
jackal seems to prefer woodland and scrub areas and the black-backed jackal
farmlands, savannas, open and alpine areas. However, jackals are very adapta-
ble and are often found in areas they are not normally associated with. They
are sociable creatures and will often scavenge dead animals in a pack and occa-
sionally hunt in packs, but usually they hunt alone or in pairs. They are also
monogamous and mating pairs are aggressively territorial, marking the area
with their urine and feces.

Jackals are known as opportunistic omnivores. Meaning they will eat an-
Side-striped jackal ything they happen to come across, like insects, birds, fruits, grass and even
raid rubbish dumps if one happens to be nearby. When hunting in a pack they
are known to bring down any animal they feel they can handle, like antelope
and sheep. Jackals are nocturnal, sleeping most of the day and hunting in the
twilight hours or at night. With the darkness for cover this makes them feel
safe enough to enter built up suburban areas and farmland where they will kill
household pets and farm animals. Sadly, this has led to a growing dislike for
the jackal, and a good excuse to hunt them down and kill them. The truth is,
the jackal is only doing what it has been doing for thousands of years, long be-
fore man decided to encroach on its territory. To the jackal, its nothing per-
sonal, after all, its food, food it needs to keep it alive.
Golden jackal