Golden Jackal
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| Canis aureus Linnaeus, 1758 |
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 Golden Jackal range
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The Golden Jackal (Canis aureus), also called the Asiatic, Oriental or Common Jackal is a mammal of the order Carnivora native to north and east Africa, southeastern Europe and South Asia to Burma. It is the largest of the jackals, and the only species to occur outside Africa, with 13 different subspecies being recognised.[1]
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[edit] Physical characteristics
The golden Jackal's short, coarse fur is usually yellow to pale gold and brown-tipped, though the color can vary with season and region. On the Serengeti Plain in Northern Tanzania for example, the Golden Jackal's fur is brown-grizzled yellow in the wet season (December-January), changing to pale gold in the dry season (September-October).[3] Jackals living in mountainous regions may have a greyer shade of fur.[4]
The Golden Jackal is generally 70–105 centimetres (28–42 inches) in length, with a tail length of about 25 centimetres (10 in). Its standing height is approximately 38–50 cm (16–20 in) at the shoulder. Average weight is 7–15 kilograms (15–33 pounds) with males tending to be 15% heavier than the females.[3][5] Scent glands are present on the face and the anus and genital regions. Females have 4-8 mammae.[5] The dental formula is I 3/3 C 1/1 Pm 4/4 M 2/3 = 42.[4]
In all their ranges, the Golden Jackal displays a great deal of diversity in appearance. Jackals living in north Africa tend to be larger and have longer carnassials than those living in the Middle East.[6] Moroccan Golden Jackals are paler and have more pointed snouts than Egyptian Golden Jackals.[7]
[edit] Relatedness to wolves
Although often grouped with the other jackals (the Black-backed Jackal, and the Side-striped Jackal), genetic research indicates that the Golden Jackal is not closely related to them, but is within a "wolf" group which also includes the Gray Wolf (and the Domestic Dog) and the Coyote.[8] The genetic evidence is consistent with the form of the skull, which also bears more similarities to those of the Coyote and the Gray Wolf than to those of the other jackal species.[4]
[edit] Courtship and reproduction
The Golden Jackal is a strictly monogamous species. In most jackal families, there are one or two adult members who act as "helpers". Helpers are jackals who have reached sexual maturity, yet remain with their parents without breeding, in order to help take care of the next litter.[3]
The time of births vary according to region. In East Africa, births occur mainly in January-February, in Southeastern Europe in April-May, but take place non-seasonally in tropical Asia. The Golden Jackals of the Serengeti court at the end of the dry season and produce pups during the rainy season.[3] Young are born in a den within the parents' marked territory after a 63 day gestation period. Litters usually contain 2–4 pups which are weaned after 50 to 90 days.[3] Cubs at birth weigh 200–250 grams, and open their eyes after about ten days. The young are milked, then fed by regurgitation when they begin to take solid food at about three months. Sexual maturity comes at eleven months.[3]
[edit] Ecology
[edit] Diet and hunting
The Golden Jackal is an opportunistic feeder with a diet which consists of 54% animal food and 46% plant food.[3] It is a very capable hunter of small to medium sized prey such as rabbits, rodents, birds, insects, fish and monkeys.[4] The Golden Jackal uses its highly acute hearing to identify small prey hiding in vegetation.[4] It has been observed to hunt ungulates 4–5 times its body weight, though it will more commonly target young specimens. In the Serengeti, the Golden Jackal is a major predator of gazelle fawns,[3] while in India, the Golden Jackal often kills Blackbuck calves.[4] Although it is common for jackals to hunt alone, they do occasionally do so in small groups, usually consisting of 2-5 individuals. Working in a pack greatly increases the chances of making a successful kill.[4] During the harvest season in India, the jackal feeds predominantly on fruits.[4]
the Golden Jackal will scavenge given the opportunity, and will steal from the kills of other carnivores such as lions and tigers, usually waiting for the larger predators to leave before feeding themselves. Groups of 5–18 jackals have been seen frequenting large ungulate carcasses. Jackals living in some parts of India and Bangladesh will subside primarily on carrion and garbage.[4]
[edit] Relationships with other predators
Along with the Golden Jackal, the Red Fox is a commonly occurring predator in Israel. Although the jackal is triple the size of a fox,[citation needed] their dietary habits are identical, and are therefore in direct competition with one another. Foxes generally ignore jackal scents or tracks in their territories, though they will avoid close physical proximity with jackals themselves. Studies have shown that in areas where jackals became very abundant, the population size of foxes decreased significantly, apparently because of competitive exclusion.[9] In India, Golden Jackals have been known to appropriate the dens of Bengal Foxes.[4]
Conversely, jackals are shown to vacate areas inhabited by the larger Gray Wolf. Wolves are often actively intolerant of jackals in their established territories and have been known to approach jackal-calling stations at a quick trotting pace, presumably to chase off the competitors.[10] There are however occasions when jackals scavenged on wolf kills without evoking any aggressive responses from the larger canids.[4]
Golden Jackal remains have been found in spotted hyena scat,[11] though hyenas have been shown to have a distaste to Golden Jackal flesh, consuming them only when starving.[12]
[edit] Relationships with humans
In 1954, the Israeli government enacted the Wild Animal's Protection law, which extended protection to 17 native carnivores save for the Golden Jackal, which was considered vermin. The jackal was only added to the list after a disastrous eradication programme which resulted in the unintentional poisoning of other carnivores as well.[13] In 1979 two young children were attacked and killed by jackals.[3]
[edit] Livestock predation
In southern Bulgaria, 1053 attacks on small stock, mainly sheep and lambs, were recorded between 1982–87, along with some damages to newborn deer in game farms.[10] In Israel, about 1.5%–1.9% of the calves born in the Golan Heights die due to predation, mainly by Golden Jackals. In both cases, the high predation rate is thought to be the consequence of a jackal population explosion due to the availability of food in illegal garbage dumps.[14] Preventative measures to avoid depredation were also lacking in both cases. However, even without preventing measures, the highest damages by jackals from Bulgaria are minimal when compared to the domestic animal losses by wolves.[10]
The majority of attacks on calves in the Golan Heights occur within 2 days after delivery, and male calves are usually more likely to be attacked than females, due to the fact that they are heavier and more difficult to deliver. Female cattle giving birth are sometimes attacked along with their half born offspring, sometimes resulting in severe injuries to the vaginal area.[14]
[edit] Hybridization with dogs
In Russia, Golden Jackal/Siberian Husky hybrids known as Sulimov dogs were bred as sniffer dogs in the belief that jackals have a superior sense of smell, though their lack of trust in humans and adaptability to cold climates made crossing with huskies necessary. As well as a superior sense of smell, important at low temperatures where substances are less volatile and therefore less pungent, the so called Sulimov dogs are small sized and can work in confined spaces. The jackal hybrids were bred by senior researcher Klim Sulimov, Senior Research Assistant at the D.S. Likhachev Scientific Research Institute for Cultural Heritage and Environmental Protection in Russia. He claims that his creations combine the qualities of Arctic reindeer herding dogs, which can work in temperatures as low as −70 °C (−95 °F), and jackals which enjoy the heat up to +40 °C (+105 °F). Though the jackal hybrid breeding project begain in 1975, with 25 of the animals being currently on duty, they have yet to be registered as a working dog breed.[15]
[edit] Cultural perceptions
The Egyptian god of the dead; Anubis was portrayed as a jackal-headed man, or as a jackal wearing ribbons and holding a flagellum, a symbol of protection, in the crook of its arm. Anubis was always shown as a black jackal or dog, even though real jackals are typically tan or a light brown. To the Egyptians, black was the color of regeneration, death, and the night. It was also the color that the body turned during mummification. The reason for Anubis' animal model being canine is based on what the ancient Egyptians themselves observed of the creature - dogs and jackals often haunted the edges of the desert, especially near the cemeteries where the dead were buried. In fact, it is thought that the Egyptians began the practice of making elaborate graves and tombs to protect the dead from desecration by jackals.
The Greeks god Hermes and the monster Cerberus are thought to derive their origins from the golden jackal.[4]
Some tribes in India believe in the existence of a horn-like growth called shiyal shingi which appears on the heads of some jackals. The possession of this growth is considered a sign of good fortune.[4]
The jackal is mentioned frequently in the Bible, where it is portrayed as a sinister creature, most notably in Psalm 63:9-11 where it is stated that non-believers would become food for the jackals. In his book Running with the Fox, David W. Macdonald theorizes that due to the general scarcity and elusiveness of foxes in Israel, the author of the Book of Judges may have actually been describing the much more common golden jackals when narrating how Samson tied torches to the tails of 300 foxes to make them destroy the vineyards of the Philistines.
[edit] Conservation status
As a species of Least Concern, the Golden Jackal is considered common throughout its range and is not currently threatened.[2]
[edit] Subspecies
There are 13 subspecies of the Golden Jackal:[1]
| Subspecies | Binomial authority | Description | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canis a. algirensis | Wagner, 1841 | Sports large, fox-like ears and a lupine face, golden fur with a slight reddish tint, white stain on the throat. | Algeria, Marocco and Tunisia |
| Canis a. anthus | F. Cuvier, 1820 | Known as the small black jackal, it is darker than other subspecies. | Senegal |
| Canis a. aureus | Linnaeus, 1758 | Generic subspecies | Live among central range of golden jackal. |
| Canis a. bea | Heller, 1914 | This Golden Jackal lives in Serengeti National Park, included to bea subspecies. | Kenya, Northern Tanzania |
| Canis a. cruesemanni | Matschie, 1900 | Thailand, Myanmar to east India | |
| Canis a. ecsedensis | Kretzoi, 1947 | ||
| Canis a. indicus | Hodgson, 1833 | India, Nepal | |
| Egyptian Jackal; Canis a. lupaster | Hemprich and Ehrenberg, 1833 | Sometimes mistaken for the Gray Wolf subspecies, with long legs and ears, dirty-yellow fur. | Egypt, locally |
| Canis a. moreotica | I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1835 | It is among the largest of the golden jackal subspecies, in Hungary and Austria it is known as the Hungarian reed wolf. | Southern and Southern-central Europe, especially Greece |
| Canis a. naria | Wroughton, 1916 | Southern India | |
| Canis a. riparius | Hemprich and Ehrenberg, 1832 | Coast of Etiopia and Eritrea | |
| Canis a. soudanicus | Thomas, 1903 | Sudan and Marocco | |
| Canis a. syriacus | Hemprich and Ehrenberg, 1833 | Closely related to Canis aureus lupaster, but is smaller and more richly colored. | Israel, western Jordan |
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Wozencraft, W. C. (16 November 2005). in Wilson, D. E., and Reeder, D. M. (eds): Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition, Johns Hopkins University Press, 574. ISBN 0-801-88221-4.
- ^ a b Sillero-Zubiri & Hoffmann (2004). Canis aureus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 5 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Canis aureus. Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved on 2007-07-31.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Golden Jackal. Canids.org. Retrieved on 2007-08-15.
- ^ a b Golden Jackal. Lioncrusher's Domain. Retrieved on 2007-07-31.
- ^ Macdonald, David (1992). The Velvet Claw, 256. ISBN 0563208449.
- ^ (1923) Hutchinson's animals of all countries; the living animals of the world in picture and story, 384.
- ^ Lindblad-Toh et al. 2005. Genome sequence, comparative analysis and haplotype structure of the domestic dog. Nature 438: 803-819.
- ^ Behavioural responses of red foxes to an increase in the presence of golden jackals: a field experiment. Department of Zoology, Tel Aviv University. Retrieved on 2007-07-31.
- ^ a b c Conservation Action Plan for the golden jackal (Canis aureus) in Greece. WWF Greece. Retrieved on 2007-07-31.
- ^ Crocuta crocuta. Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
- ^ Kruuk, Hans (1972). The Spotted Hyena: A study of predation and social behaviour, pp.335. 0563208449.
- ^ http://www.wolf.org/wolves/news/iwmag/2007/fall/wow.pdf
- ^ a b Cattle Predation by the Golden Jackal Canis in the Golan Heights, Israel. Department of zoology, Tel Aviv university. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
- ^ BBC News | SCI/TECH | Jackal blood makes 'perfect' sniffer dogs
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