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GOLDEN JACKAL

16th June, 2023

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Context

  • The operation was carried in a village, named Waghale. It is located Junnar Range of Pune district of Maharashtra.
  • It was a 3-hour-long successful operation, carried by Wildlife SOS and the Maharashtra Forest Department.
  • After rescue this 3-4 years old jackal was examined the veterinary team from Wildlife SOS, and found to be in good health.

Other Details

  • After making sure jackal has no injuries, it was again released in the Junnar range, its natural habitat.

Golden Jackal

  • A native species to the Indian subcontinent, they are also known as, Canis Aureus.
  • Other names are - Asiatic Jackal , Common Jackal.
  • Size wise they are little bigger than foxes but smaller than wolves.
  • Distinctive features
    • Golden body
    • Dark black fur
    • Bushy tail
    • Raised ears
    • Short legs
  • With an approximate population of 80,000, they usually live in pairs in the wild.
  • They can live in a variety of natural habitat some of them are -
    • Forested,
    • Has scrub
    • Savanna type grassland
    • Semi-arid or semi urban type
    • In valleys
  • Distribution
    • Southeast Europe
    • Central Asia
    • Few regions of South and Southeast Asia like India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar (for eg. Maharastra, Gujarat)
    • Western Asia
  • By nature these mammals are omnivorous and scavengers. They and can eat various small animals, fish, hares, birds, fruits etc.

Threat

  • There are no major threats to golden jackal however some are -
    • Open wells around the villages.
    • Deliberate illegal killing and poisoning.
    • Hunting, wildlife trafficking, man-animal conflict
    • Legal culling.
    • Highway accidents.

Benefits

  • They can play an important role in the sustenance of forest ecology.
  • They can help in getting rid of large quantities of animal waste.
  • In some human inhabited regions of Europe they also considered as crop pest rodents ensuring healthy agricultural produce.

Conservation status

  • These are protected under Schedule II of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972.
  • Falls under Least concern category as per IUCN.

Must read Article:

https://www.iasgyan.in/daily-current-affairs/international-union-for-conservation-of-nature

Wildlife SOS

It is a non-profit organisation of India specially working for protection and conservation of wild animals. Established in India in 1995 it has a main objective of Rescuing and rehabilitating of distressed wildlife in distress.

PRACTICE QUESTION

Consider following statements about Golden Jackals :

1. IUCN classifies them as Threatened.

2. These can be found in mountains with elevation more than 3000 meters.

Select the correct answer using the codes below –

A. 1 only

B. 2 only

C. Both 1 and 2

D. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: (D)

https://www.deccanherald.com/national/west/maharashtra-golden-jackal-falls-in-25-feet-well-rescued-after-3-hour-long-operation-1227525.html