The Caracal has very characterisic tufts of black hair
at the end of its pointed ears. It is very good at bush
camouflage, and is scarcely noticed when lying frozen against
the earth. This graceful cat is a adept hunter and possesses
great speed and lightning reflexes: it is a simple matter
for it to snatch a flying bird out of the air. The caracal
has a leopard-like bark and is robustly built with heavy
limbs. It has powerful jaws, long, sharp teeth and its paws
have curved heavy claws which make it a fierce predator,
which can become very dangerous when injured or cornered.
In the wild, they prey on dassies, birds, lizards and small
buck, and are generally averse to taking carrion, although
they have been known to do so. They are very adept tree
climbers, and often take their prey into a tree to be eaten.
The caracal prefers to remove fur and feathers from the
carcass before eating the rest. The female caracal produces
a litter of one to three in a tree or disused aardvark hole.