Jordan Times
Thursday, August 26, 1999
Endangered caracal cubs find new home in Al Mujib
reserve
By Ruba Saqr
AMMAN — Two caracal cubs, an endangered species of the cat family, found a new home after being taken in by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) two weeks ago.
The caracals, found by residents of the Ghor Safi in southern Jordan Valley, were admitted to a nearby police station before an RSCN patrol took custody of the abandoned pair.
Before admitting the two caracals (Red Lynxes) to Al Mujib reserve, the cubs were mothered by RSCN workers in a rehabilitation area equipped for receiving young animals.
“It's dangerous to expose new-born animals to a sudden environmental change. The cubs, a male and a female, are two months old only. We had to play the role of the mother in one of our protected areas before introducing the offsprings to the reserve,” said RSCN's General Manager Khaled Nassar.
Nassar explained that the caracal is a carnivorous animal that feeds on young deer, onyxes, mice, hares, birds and lizards.
“Really... the caracal is not threatening to human life, on the contrary, they fear people,” Nassar said.
The caracals' most distinctive feature is their long tufted ears. The word caracal means “black ears” in Turkish. Their short tan fur helps them stay cool in the desert heat— as they are native to Africa and southweastern Asia.
As with most kittens, baby caracals are born blind.
At only six weeks old, the caracal is no longer a playful baby, but an energetic cub that cannot be raised as a pet.
At age two months, the caracals are ready to share their mother's prey.
Full grown caracals usually weigh up to 35 pounds. In India, they have been trained to hunt gazelles and birds for people, and were also tamed for entertainment.
“Although Jordan's reserves are not fenced, except for Al Azraq reserve, caracals do not tend to leave their home ranges. They stay in an area of 30 km square... that's their kingdom, so to speak,” Nassar concluded.