![]() ![]() The coat is uniformly reddish tan or sandy, though black caracals are also known. The ear tufts may start drooping as the animal ages. The eyes appear to be narrowly open due to the lowered upper eyelid, probably an adaptation to shield the eyes from the sun's glare. ![]() The prominent facial features include the 4.5-cm-long black tufts on the ears, two black stripes from the forehead to the nose, the black outline of the mouth, the distinctive black facial markings, and the white patches surrounding the eyes and the mouth. ![]() The caracal is sexually dimorphic the females are smaller than the males in most bodily parameters. The tan, bushy tail extends to the hocks. It reaches nearly 40–50 cm (16–20 in) at the shoulder. The caracal is a slender, moderately sized cat characterised by a robust build, a short face, long canine teeth, tufted ears, and long legs. The relationship of the caracal is considered as follows: Ĭharacteristics A close facial view of a caracal, with the typical tufted ears and the black facial markings The ancestor of this lineage arrived in Africa between 8.5 and 5.6 million years ago. These two species together with the serval ( Leptailurus serval) form the Caracal lineage, which diverged between 11.56 and 6.66 million years ago. Results of a phylogenetic study indicates that the caracal and the African golden cat ( Caracal aurata) diverged between 2.93 and 1.19 million years ago. schmitzi) ( Matschie, 1912) – occurs in Asia nubicus) ( Fischer, 1829) – occurs in North and West Africa ![]() caracal) (Schreber, 1776) – occurs in Southern and East Africa Since 2017, three subspecies have been recognised as valid: In the 19th and 20th centuries, several caracal specimens were described and proposed as subspecies. It is placed in the family Felidae and subfamily Felinae. In 1843, John Edward Gray placed it in the genus Caracal. Taxonomy and phylogenyįelis caracal was the scientific name used by Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber in 1776 who described a caracal skin from the Cape of Good Hope. In the Emirati Dialect of Arabic, its name is الوشق الصحراوي ( al Washq al Ṣaḥrāwī), translating directly to 'desert lynx'. Its name in the Tigrinya language is ጭክ ኣንበሳ, ch’ok anbessa, which means 'bearded lion'. The caracal is also known as desert lynx and Persian lynx. The 'lynx' of the Greeks and Romans was most probably the caracal, and the name 'lynx' is sometimes still applied to it, but the present-day lynx proper is a separate genus. The name 'caracal' was proposed by Georges Buffon in 1761 who referred to its Turkish name 'Karrah-kulak' or 'Kara-coulac', meaning 'black ears'. The average lifespan of captive caracals is nearly 16 years. Juveniles leave their mothers at the age of nine to ten months, though a few females stay back with their mothers. Gestation lasts between two and three months, resulting in a litter of one to six kittens. Both sexes become sexually mature by the time they are one year old and breed throughout the year. It stalks its prey until it is within 5 m (16 ft) of it, after which it runs it down and kills it with a bite to the throat or to the back of the neck. It can leap higher than 3.0 m (10 ft) and catch birds in midair. The caracal is a carnivore that typically preys upon birds, rodents, and other small mammals. It is territorial, and lives mainly alone or in pairs. Typically nocturnal, the caracal is highly secretive and difficult to observe. It was first scientifically described by German naturalist Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber in 1776. Its coat is uniformly reddish tan or sandy, while the ventral parts are lighter with small reddish markings. It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long tufted ears, and long canine teeth. The caracal ( Caracal caracal) ( / ˈ k ær ə k æ l/) is a medium-sized wild cat native to Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and arid areas of Pakistan and northwestern India. ![]()
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