Caracal

The caracal is a medium-sized wildcat found across Africa, the Middle East and parts of Central and South Asia, easily recognized by its uniform reddish-tan coat and long, black-tufted ears that give the species its name, derived from a Turkish word meaning black ear. Powerfully built with long hind legs, it is renowned for extraordinary jumping ability, capable of leaping several metres into the air to strike birds directly out of flight, in addition to hunting rodents, hares and small antelope on the ground. Caracals are solitary, mainly nocturnal hunters that rely on stealth and a short, explosive charge rather than sustained pursuit, and they can survive in a wide range of habitats from savanna and scrubland to semi-desert and dry forest. The species remains relatively widespread and adaptable, though populations have declined in parts of its range due to habitat loss and conflict with livestock farmers, who sometimes target it for killing small stock.