Caracal Lying on the Ground

Caracal Facts

Caracal Cat Facts

Common Name: Caracal
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata (Vertebrata)
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Felidae
Genus: Felinae (Caracal)
Species: caracal

Misc: The name Caracal is derived from a Turkish word “karakulak” meaning “black ear.” The Caracal was once trained for bird hunting in Iran and India. They were put into arenas containing a flock of pigeons, and wagers were made as to how many the cat would takedown. This is the origination of the expression “to put a cat amongst the pigeons.” The Caracal is capable of leaping into the air and knocking down 10-12 birds at one time!

Interested in Buying a Caracal Kitten?

Learn why Big Cats make Bad Pets

Size and Appearance: Often referred to as the desert lynx, the Caracal does not actually possess the same physical attributes of members of the lynx family, such as the characteristic ruff of hair around the face. Instead, it has a short, dense coat, usually, a uniform tawny-brown to brick-red, and black (melanistic) individuals have been recorded. As the name implies, the backs of the ears are black and topped with long black tufts about 1.75 inches long. This tuft is the characteristic that Caracals do share with the members of the lynx family. It is the largest member of Africa’s small cats, and it’s most formidable. Males can weigh as much as 40 pounds, and females as much as 35. They stand between 16-20 inches at the shoulder and are 35-39 inches long.

Caracal Cat Locations

Habitat: Caracals live in the drier savannah and woodland regions of sub-Saharan Africa, and prefer the more scrubby, arid habitats. They will also inhabit evergreen and montane forests but are not found in tropical rain forests.

Distribution: Central Africa, South Africa, West Africa, southwest Asia, Middle East.

Reproduction and Offspring: After a gestation of approximately 78-81 days, females produce a litter of 1-4 kittens, with 2 being the average. They begin to open their eyes on their first day of life, but it takes 6-10 days for them to completely open. They are weaned at 10 weeks, and will remain with their mothers for up to a year. They attain sexual maturity between 12-16 months. In captivity, Caracals have lived up to 19 years.

Social System and Communication: Caracals are solitary animals, and social interactions are limited to periods of mating, except for mothers with kittens. Hear our purrs, hisses, snarls, calls, and growl sounds HERE

Hunting and Diet: Caracals prey on a variety of mammals, with the most common being rodents, hares, hyraxes, and small antelope. Unlike the other small African cats, Caracals will not hesitate to kill prey larger than themselves, such as adult springbok or young Kudu. Caracals have also been reported on occasion (although this is an exception rather than a rule) to store their kills in trees, as do the leopards. These cats are mostly nocturnal but have been spotted in daylight in protected areas.

Principal Threats: Caracals are mostly killed for livestock predation, although this only occurs in a few of its ranges it still adds up to large numbers of deaths (2219 animals in one area alone). In other areas of its range, it fights hunting for its skin and for its meat, which some bush tribes consider to be a luxury.

Status: CITES: Appendix II. IUCN: Not listed.

Felid TAG 2003 recommendation: Caracals (Caracal caracal). Caracals are managed with the assistance of an international studbook. Most recent importations are from Namibia. Ultimately, a pure subspecies can be maintained in North America. Although the TAG originally targeted the Asian race from Turkmenistan for the RCP, it became apparent that only highly inbred hybrids were present in North America. More likely, no aspect of this race is in this region, or likely to become available. The population target for the PMP is 80 individuals.

How rare is this cat? The International Species Information Service lists 169 in zoos worldwide, with 52 being in the U.S.

Information reprinted With Permission from the IUCN Wild Cats Book

See Caracals Living Free

See Conservation Work Funded By Big Cat Rescue here:

All conservation insitu work: https://bigcatrescue.org/insitu/

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16 Comments

  1. Hello! This is kind of off topic but I need some help from an established blog.

    Is it very difficult to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but I
    can figure things out pretty quick. I’m thinking about creating
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    you have any ideas or suggestions? Thank you

  2. Such a beautiful animal, definitely not for a pet. Thank you BCR for being the retirement home for those ? so they can live out their lives as close as possible to being wild minus the dangers of living in the wild.

  3. all this was VERY useful about this appealing Cat. they’re cute looking that is for sure. the Rep of yours on the clip was really up to date of the characteristics and lifestyle of this particular cat

  4. Could the ear tufts function as fine wind sensors to precisely detect the speed and direction of air currents to allow the cat to better position itself in the optimal path toward a prey without being detected by its scent?

  5. I lost four cats in quick succession last year and we couldn't figure out why until I saw a caracal on our farm last night, after reading these comments I now no why…

  6. Do you have breeding programs for all of the endangered species you have in your sanctuaries?

    1. The only endangered cats at the sanctuary who were SSP animals were the Snow Leopards who have all died, and the Sand Cats and they are brother and sister. The only exotic cats in the U.S. with traceable pedigrees are in AZA accredited zoos. None of the privately held cats can do any good for conservation, and it is ridiculous for even the zoos to waste money breeding exotic cats. They do just fine if you give them enough protected habitat and prey. That is where the energy should be focused.

  7. Thank you BCR,
    all this was VERY informative about this great looking Cat. they ARE cute looking that's for sure. your Rep on the video was really well informed of the features and lifestyle of this cat. he's definitely done his homework.
    Thanks again…

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