Caracal: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the caracal lives – recorded in 6 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Caracal caracal
Group	Small wild cats
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	6 countries
Continents	Africa, Asia
Diet (main food)	impala, meerkat, black and rufous elephant shrew, European turtle dove, Bush vlei rat, carrion, gerenuk, Madoqua, hen, banded mongoose, African Penguin, Helmeted Guineafowl, Eudorcas thomsonii, goat, Pedetes, Dorcas gazelle, Vulturine Guineafowl, Felis lybica, Hyracoidea, Raphicerus sharpei, Lepus capensis, Sylvicapra grimmia, Barbary striped grass mouse, Mountain reedbuck
Class	Mammal
Order	Carnivora
Family	Felidae

Where does the caracal live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the caracal in 6 countries and territories across Africa and Asia. In Botswana, Iran (Islamic Republic of) it is listed as introduced (GRIIS checklists via GBIF).

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

What does a caracal eat?

Wikidata lists the main food source of the caracal as: impala, meerkat, black and rufous elephant shrew, European turtle dove, Bush vlei rat, carrion, gerenuk, Madoqua, hen, banded mongoose, African Penguin, Helmeted Guineafowl, Eudorcas thomsonii, goat, Pedetes, Dorcas gazelle, Vulturine Guineafowl, Felis lybica, Hyracoidea, Raphicerus sharpei, Lepus capensis, Sylvicapra grimmia, Barbary striped grass mouse, Mountain reedbuck.

Is the caracal endangered?

The caracal’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the caracal?

The caracal (Caracal caracal) is a mammal in the order Carnivora and the family Felidae, genus Caracal. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the caracal

The caracal (Caracal caracal) is a wild cat native to Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and arid areas of Pakistan and northwestern India. It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long tufted ears, relatively short tail, and long canine teeth. Its coat is uniformly reddish tan or sandy, while the ventral parts are lighter with small reddish markings. It reaches 40–50 cm (16–20 in) at the shoulder and weighs 8–19 kg (18–42 lb). It was first scientifically described by German naturalist Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber in 1776. Three subspecies are recognised.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Caracal (revision 1380064678), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q30847 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).