article-refinement Jackal

Photo by Chris Stenger on Unsplash

Jackal

Sep 02, 2010

Design

Jackal

Many jackals live in family units, with the older siblings living and helping with the younger pups. This helps protect the family. A female jackal will change its home every two weeks to protect her young from predators. This instinct became part of her behavior after the Fall when animals began hunting other animals.

Features

  • Two species of jackals are tan-colored while the black-backed has black hair on its back against its reddish body. Most jackals have black-tipped tails as well.

Fun Facts

  • Jackals use their tails to communicate to others. Jackals are also very noisy; they howl and yelp.
  • The black-backed jackal gives birth to her young underground in an empty burrow.
  • A single 20-lb (9-kg) jackal will drive off an 80-lb (36-kg) hyena.
  • Jackals help keep the numbers of vermin down, such as rodents and insects, which eat crops.

Created Kind Members

Coyote, wolf, dingo, fox, domesticated dog

CLASS: Mammalia (mammal)
ORDER: Carnivora (meat-eating)
FAMILY: Canidae (dog kind)
GENUS/SPECIES: Canis aureus, C. adustus, and C. mesomelas (golden, side-striped, and black-backed jackal)

Size: 15–20 in (0.4–0.5 m) tall
Weight: 15–35 lbs (6.8–15.9 kg)
Original Diet: Plants
Present Diet: Both plants and animals; known also as a scavenger
Habitat: Grasslands, woodlands, and deserts of Africa; one species from Arabia to India

Read More Articles

Next

Supplemental material for the Zoo Guide: A Bible-Based Handbook to the Zoo

article-refinement Footer
© 2025 Answers in Genesis