Caracal

[panther]

As somebody pointed out under the 'Indian Cheetah' topic that the "Cheetah is the only animal declared extinct in the last 100 years in India". I don't wish argue about the veracity of this statement but, want to bring to your notice another medium sized mamal which to the best of my knowledge has not been observed for the last 40 years. The 'Caracal' (Caracal caracal shmitzi), also known as 'Syahgosh' in vernacular, once common & sharing it's range with 'Cheetah' in the region of Kutch (gujurat), rajasthan, madhya pradesh & drier parts of UP, has but all vanished. Like cheetah it's a predator of scrub jungle preying on birds, rodents & other small mamals. Now here look at the beauty of nature, both are predators sharing the same habitat but still thriving, because they survive on different prey specice thus avoiding any conflict.
In the bygone era caracals were tamed and trained -just like cheetahs- to hunt birds, hares & small deers. It was pushed towards extinction because of habitat & prey loss and many fell into the traps of poachers. Although Caracal as a specie still survives in Northern Africa but I don't think the sub-specie 'schmitzi' survives in India because not even one sighting has been reported in last 40 years.

[Sakobav]

Panther

Great piece do post a picture of this extinct cat sad..another one gone

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[prashantsingh]

It was not just the Caracal which shared the same habitat with the Cheetah , there was a time when the Tiger and the Lion (asiatic) shared the same habitat in the dry jungles of central and western India with the Lion habitat extending all the way to Bihar (inspiration behind Ashoka's Lions).Imagine what our jungle would have been like more than a hundred and fifty years ago.....with it's lions,tigers,leopards,cheetahs,wolf,wild dogs (Dhole) and Caracal amongst it's predators. The Indian sub-continent probably had a richer and more diverse flora and fauna than many places in Africa. If only we had taken better care of it.

[nagarifle]

i was wondering what this Caracal looked liked, so found a pic, of a cat, wonderful looking animal.

[shooter]

I saw a shyaghosh in ranthambore in 1995. the guide also saw it but didnt say it was so rare. when at the end, all gypsies leave the park and have an informal get-together and discuss the sightings, the shyaghosh didnt raise any eyebrows. they were aware of syaghosh in the park. those days i didnt have a fancy camera, only a kodak clik clik type so couldnt picture it. even the pics in good light at 30 metres didnt come out good, let alone fading light at >100 m.

[Yaj]

There was a recent sighting reported in the TOI some where in Maharashtra. I think this refers to the same
http://www.zeenews.com/news597671.html

[DAN]

10-15 years back had lots & lots of wild cats and fox in our estate. couldn't sleep because of the noise they made...mainly prayed on wild(Grey junglefowl) ,domestic chicken and peacocks... (though u can still find their prey junglefowl and peacock)ALL GONE. I dont know how but they mysteriously dissapeared. Nobody has seen any from the past 2-3 years.

[nagarifle]

i do seem to recall few in Nagaland, here they are known as jungle cats, some have turned up dead in the meat market. i am pretty sure it s the same spices, but have to keep un eye out, just to be sure.

[shooter]

i hope you guys mean caracal and not the wild cat. look out for the tufts of hair on the ears that make it stand out from the jungle cat (but not from lynx)

[Sakobav]

Folks

I really hope and pray that these cats are not extinct what a waste reminds me of mountain lions in US which were on verge of extinction and are thriving now..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar

OT I saw a photograph in rural Idaho at a Gas station with a Mountain Lion cornered on a Cliff/mountain by hunting dogs...I recall the owner stating it was a true photo..

Also maybe Carcals can be saved just like Wolves in US which once introduced are thriving in US and Canada..This should be a model for introducing rare species in wild. Key thing was that both governments worked together..
http://www.defenders.org/programs_and_p ... y_efforts/

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