Apart from my Spotted Hyena addiction, I’m also truly
fascinated by Black-backed Jackals. From my experience they form part of the list
of misunderstood animals. When spending time with them, they are quite the
characters, especially when playing, not to mention their iconic howling calls,
when communicating to each other during the night or early morning.
Some of the perks of having a fiancé that has work related
projects in Botswana, is that I get to tag along and when the work is done, it’s
time to explore. One particular morning we set off bright and early towards the
Orapa Game Park, which is a conservation area situated in the Orapa mining
zone. The park is home to a big variety of animals and hosts an abundance of bird
species.
Blending in…
Driving towards the pan, we were greeted by Impalas, Kudu,
Blue Wildebeest and Ostriches just to name a few. It was not long when a
Black-backed Jackal made his presence known in the distance. With the engine
off, we tried to locate the culprit, that’s when I saw him running through the
long grass. It was clear, he was out on patrol, marking his territory or even
scavenging. I was so focused on trying to photograph this jackal, that I didn’t
see a second one a little further back, which I only noticed when she started
to call.
That’s when the first jackal I was busy photographing,
answered the calls. Not long after they came to greet one another by sniffing
and bouncing around excitedly. It was clear that this was a jackal pair, the
male being the larger one of the two. it was such a beautiful sight to see
these two bonding.
A good morning kiss…
On Patrol…
Did you know?
They are monogamous, which means they are one of the few
mammals that will form a pair for life. Both male and female share duties,
which include defending territories and taking care of the pups. Sometimes the
litter of the previous year will help guard the den or grooming of the pups,
like wild dogs they can also regurgitate food for the little ones and the
mother.
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