Environment

The National Board for life and Union Ministry of surroundings, Forest and climate change last month enclosed the Lynx caracal, a medium-sized wildcat found in components of Rajasthan and Gujarat, within the list of critically species

·        The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists caracals as a species of ‘least concern’, primarily thanks to their large numbers in Africa.

·         But in India theyre ‘endangered’.

·         Now its classified as ‘Critically Endangered’ in India.

·        Since 2001, the Caracal’s presence has been only according the 3 states, together with Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh

About Lynx caracal

·         Besides India, the caracal is found in many dozen countries across Africa, theMiddle East, Central and South Asia. whereas it thrives in components of Africa, its numbers in Asia are declining.

·         The caracal wild cat (Caracal caracal) may be a rare species in India.

·         The wildcat has long legs, a brief face, long canine teeth, and distinctive ears — long and pointy, with tufts of black hair at their tips.

·         The picture ears are what provide the animal its name — caracal comes from the Turkish karakulak, which means ‘black ears’.

·         In India, its referred to as siya gosh, a Persian name that interprets as ‘black Ear’. ASanskrit fable exists a few tiny wild cat named deergha-karn or ‘long-eared’.

·         In tannin dialect of Gujarat Caracals are domestically named as Hornotro which suggests killer of a blackbuck whereas in Rajasthan its referred to as Junglee Bilaoor Wildcat.

·         They are largely found within the tropical dry deciduous and tropical thorn and woody plant forests of Central and Western India.

·        The caracal has traditionally lived in 13 Indian states, in 9 out of the 26 biotic provinces. within the amount before Independence, the animal roamed an calculable area of 7.9 lakh sq km; between then and 2000, however, this surround shrunken by virtually a [*fr1]. After 2001, sightings are according from only 3 states.

·         “From 2001 to 2020, the according extent of prevalence additional diminished by95.95%, with current presence restricted to 16,709 sq km, but five-hitter of the caracal’s according extent of prevalence within the 1948-2000 amount,” according toKhandal et al.

·        The caracal may be earlier found in arid and semi-arid scrub forest and ravines in Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, province,Maharashtra, province, Telangana, Odisha, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh.

·         Today, its presence is restricted to Rajasthan, Kutch, and components of MP.

·         Caracals had appeared in Indian paintings dating back to seventeenth century.

·        The caracal has traditionally been valued for its litheness and extraordinary ability to catch birds in flight; it was a favourite coursing or hunting animal in medieval India.

·        Their survival in India is endangered primary reasons being the rapid loss ofscrub and thorn habitat and unchecked human activates in the caracals habitat

How listing as critically endangered will help?

·        The listing of the caracal as critically vulnerable is predicted to bring central funding to conservation efforts. its doubtless to make sure that the animal is studied comprehensively for the primary time, together with its range, population, prey, etc.

 Interesting facts:

·         The caracal has historically been valued for its litheness and extraordinary ability to catch birds in flight; it absolutely was a favorite hunting or looking animal in medieval India.

·        Firuz sovereign Tughlaq (1351-88) had siyah-goshdarkhana, stables that housed massive numbers of hunting caracal. It finds mention in AbulFazl’sAkbarnama, as a looking animal within the time of Akbar (1556-1605). Descriptions and illustrations of the caracal is found in medieval texts like the Anvar-i-Suhayli, Tutinama, Khamsa-e-Nizami, and Shahnameh.

·         The caracal’s use as a hunting animal is believed to own taken it way on the far side itsnatural vary to places like Ladakh within the north to Bengal within the east. The east india Company’s robert clive is alleged to own been bestowed with a caracal when he defeated Siraj-ud-daullah within the Battle of Plassey.