The elusive caracal

By Dr Anina Lee

On 25 February 2021, a caracal was fatally injured by a speeding motorist on the R43 near the Green House in Vermont. It was desperately sad and so unnecessary.

On his way to work, a member of the public spotted the caracal lying on the side of the road. He stopped to see if he could help. The cat tried to move away, but it stumbled into the bushes with great difficulty. It was evident that it was seriously hurt.

The caracal was sedated in the field by Dr Melinda Devenish from Village Vet Clinic, Eastcliff for transport to Onrus Veterinary Clinic. The caracal was a female. She was X-rayed and found to be critically injured. She had a cervical fracture, with damage to the spinal cord and severe lung contusions. After consultation between attending vets, the difficult decision was taken to euthanise her.

Her stomach was full of food, as evidenced by many prey bones seen on the X-ray. She had been a fine and successful hunter.

Meredith Thornton arranged for the caracal to be frozen overnight and transported to the Urban Caracal Project at UCT, where a necropsy will be performed. Meredith will take samples for corticosteroid analyses for her work with the Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria. The UCT team will take fur and whiskers for isotope analysis, check what is in the stomach, sample organs, check reproductive hormones and other chemical analyses.

At least the caracal’s death will not be totally in vain. But it was avoidable. The Overstrand is a place where we are still privileged to live close to nature. It is our responsibility to care for it. Wildlife will cross roads, especially at night. It is up to us to drive carefully, at a speed that makes it possible to avoid animals (and indeed people) on the road. A magnificent animal like a caracal is to be cherished.

Click on the newspaper below to read more (see page 18).