
– Numerous stiff hairs are found growing between the pads of the toes and are probably an adaption of moving through soft sand.
– Adult caracals are usually solitary, but are sometimes seen cooperating in pairs.
– They produce a wide range of sounds — including growling, barking, hissing, purring, and ‘calling’.
– “Their home ranges are large in arid areas. Three males averaged 122.2 sq miles on Namibian ranchland. In northern Saudi Arabia, a radio-tracked male ranged over 100 to 431 sq miles in different seasons. In an agricultural area in Israel’s Negev Desert male home ranges averaged 85.2 sq miles. Home range size was positively correlated with body weight, and negatively correlated with prey availability. Male home ranges overlapped substantially (50%), and typically included those of several females. Two dispersals were observed: a male migrated 37 to 56 miles south before establishing a home range, whereas a female remained in the vicinity of her natal range, with her range partly overlapping that of her mother.”
– They can survive for long periods of time without drinking water — getting by entirely on the water found in the body of their prey.
– Caracals seem to have been of some religious significance to ancient Egyptians — the cats are often seen depicted in the wall paintings and sculptures of the period, as well as there being many embalmed bodies of the species still around.
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