Black-Eared African Cat Species

Africa is home to some of the largest cats in the world including the lion and leopard. Of the nine native wild cat species, one has distinctive large black ears. The caracal is a medium-sized cat closely related to domestic cats, mountain lions and cheetahs. It belongs to the felinae families, subfamily felidae, more commonly known as small cats. The word caracal is actually Turkish for black-eared.

  1. Description

    • The caracal grows to 23-to-42 inches long, up to 18 inches at the shoulder and around 25-to-40 lbs. It is a sleek, long-legged cat with light brown to reddish fur and a white underbelly. The face has thin black markings around the whiskers and eyes. The cat's ears are tall and pointed with long tufts at the tip which may be used to help silently communicate with other caracals. Males and females look almost identical, but males tend to be slightly larger on average.

    Habitat and Range

    • The cats have a wide distribution which includes much of Africa, central Asia and southwestern Asia. The Sahara desert separates the African and Asian caracal populations. The cats live in a range of habitats but mostly are found in forested areas. Shrub land and rocky hills are also common habitats. The cats are more tolerant of dry habitats than some other related species such as servals, but are not found in the most arid desert regions in their range.

    Diet and Predators

    • The caracal is completely carnivorous and is an agile, efficient hunter. Humans have domesticated caracals to help in hunting. It is a nocturnal hunter, using its leaping abilities to pounce on prey. A caracal can leap 10 feet vertically to pluck a bird out of the air. The cat's diet mainly consists of rodents, small deer and monkeys. In some parts of its range the caracal is the top predator but when it shares with lions, leopards and hyenas it can fall prey itself to these larger carnivores.

    Life Cycle

    • The cats live alone for most of the year, only coming together to mate. Males will sometimes fight over a female. A female can mate at any time of the year but will only have one litter per year because of the work involved in raising young. Pregnancies last between 68 and 81 days before one to six kittens are born. The female is the sole caregiver and will look after the kittens for around 10 months until they are large enough to look after themselves. The average lifespan for a caracal in the wild is 12 years, with the oldest recorded captive animal living just over 20 years.