🐱Caracal
The 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: Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
IUCN Red List assessment, 2016.
- Body mass
- 14 kg
- Body length
- 0.83 m
- Shoulder height
- 0.46 m
- Top speed
- not recorded
- Bite force
- not recorded
- Maximum lifespan
- 20 years
Everything we know about the Caracal
Typical adult figures. Where a value is an estimate rather than a measurement, it says so.
Body mass14 kgCOMBINEOther figures ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Figures vary
- 16 kgAnAgeAnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR)data quality: acceptable
Body length0.83 mCOMBINEDetails ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Shoulder height0.46 mheight of the shouldersDetails ↓Hide ↑
Account: "The height of the shoulders about 46 cm", attributed therein to Hufnagel 1972. ADW caracal account gives no height.
Source: Veals, Burnett, Morandini, Drouilly & Koprowski 2020, 'Caracal caracal (Carnivora: Felidae)', Mammalian Species 52(993):71-85, https://academic.oup.com/mspecies/article/52/993/71/5872311 · see citation
Brain mass58 gCOMBINEDetails ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Maximum lifespan20 yearsCOMBINEOther figures ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Figures vary
- 20 yearsAnAgeAnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR)data quality: acceptable
Generation length6.13 yearsCOMBINEDetails ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Age at maturity1.2 yearsCOMBINEDetails ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Gestation74 daysCOMBINEOther figures ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Figures vary
- 74 daysAnAgeAnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR)data quality: acceptable
Litter sizeabout 3COMBINEOther figures ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Figures vary
- 3AnAgeAnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR)data quality: acceptable
Trophic levelCarnivoreCOMBINEDetails ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Activity cycleCrepuscular / mixedCOMBINEDetails ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Home range294 km²COMBINEDetails ↓Hide ↑
Source: COMBINE · v1 (Soria et al. 2021) · CC BY 4.0
Volume l14 LaverageDetails ↓Hide ↑
Body mass at ~1.0 kg/L, the density of vertebrate tissue.
average = a mean across sexes or species in a group.
Not recorded for Caracal yet: top speed, bite force.
Family tree
- kingdomAnimalia
- ›phylumChordata
- ›classMammalia
- ›orderCarnivora
- ›familyFelidae
- ›genusCaracal
- ›speciesCaracal caracal
- classMammals · Mammalia
- orderCarnivorans · Carnivora
- familyFelidae
- genusCaracal
All 14 branches ↓Fewer branches ↑
- kingdomMetazoa
- phylumChordata
- subphylumCraniata
- subphylumVertebrata
- superclassGnathostomata
- superclassSarcopterygii
- superclassTetrapoda
- classMammals · Mammalia
- subclassTheria
- superorderLaurasiatheria
- orderCarnivorans · Carnivora
- suborderFeliformia
- familyFelidae
- genusCaracal
More about the Caracal
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