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Jackal

The Canine Clan: The home range of most common jackals is Africa, except for the golden jackal, which can also be found in parts of Asia. Not surprisingly these animals look amazingly like dogs as they are part of the dog family. Fur color includes golden, ginger and reddish brown. The black-backed jackal, as its name suggests, bears a distinctive black saddle over its shoulders and back.

A Taste for Anything: Jackals are omnivores and menu items include livestock, such as sheep or young cattle, hares, rodents, giant mole rats, berries, fruits, and grasses. The golden jackal has added refuse to the list, the byproduct of human encroachment of jackal habitats. Most jackals mate for life and hunt together.

Endangered in Ethiopia: The Simien jackal, also known as the Ethiopian wolf, is highly endangered due to habitat destruction, diseases from domestic dogs and overgrazing.

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DID YOU KNOW?

Consummate Scavengers: Jackals are excellent hunters, but often prefer the easy meal. They often follow big cats such as lions to scavenge their leftover prey.

Consummate Predators: Despite their unshakable reputation as scavengers, jackals regularly catch their own food. All species prey on rodents and small mammals, with some specializing in poisonous snakes, large ground birds and even young antelope.