When the couple Shai and Havazelet Feldman went on a trip to the northern Arava yesterday (Saturday), they also did not expect to see right before their eyes a caracal trying to devour a ibex caught in the fence.
Shai said that while the two were walking, Lily suddenly heard strange noises. When he looked up, he saw Yael struggling with barbed wire caught in her body. "I hurried up the mountain to help her free herself, and when I came within a few meters of her, I suddenly noticed the Caracal trying to devour the ibex! It was an amazing sight."
"An amazing sight." The Caracal tries to devour the ibex, Photo: Shai Feldman
"I stopped and started filming. After long minutes in which the Caracal tried with all its might to defeat the ibex, it apparently gave up and let it go," Feldman added. "I photographed the Caracal a little more, and after it completely disappeared from the area I continued towards the ibex to help free it, but then it jumped on its own and continued on its way."
Feldman added: "It was a most amazing event. Throughout the trip, my excitement about the experience did not diminish. I reported the incident to the Nature and Parks Authority inspector in the area in order to check the condition of the ibex."
The Caracal and the Yael, Photo: Shai Feldman
Arie Rosenberg, an inspector of the Nature and Parks Authority, said that the ibex in question was tagged in 2019 by Dr. Jonathan High School and Dr. Ronnie King, a retired veterinarian of the Authority, as part of the Yaelim study by the Authority and Ben-Gurion University. "This is a relatively old immigrant that I've known for 5 years. This is her habitat," he said. "The Caracal bit the ibex on the chin, so it's considered a minor injury that she'll survive. The rare sight of a human being, of a caracal attacking a ibex, is part of nature and the ecosystem. In this case, the ibex was caught in a fence that poses a danger to wildlife in open spaces."
The Nature and Parks Authority added that the caracal is distributed throughout Israel, and can also be found in Africa, Asia, the Caspian Sea region, northern India and Arab countries. Since the tigers disappeared from the country, the Caracal is the largest cat in Israel. It is also a shy animal that is very rare to see in the wild.
Minor injury. The Caracal and the Yael, Photo: Shai Feldman
There is no precise estimate of the number of individuals in the wild in Israel, but it is known that this animal is endangered in Israel due to damage to habitat areas and destruction of natural habitat. Today, caracles can be seen mainly in the large nature reserves in the Negev, although they are relatively rare there too.
The Caracal preys on birds and mammals such as rabbits. During the daytime, the caracles hide in nooks in the ground, dense vegetation and rock crevices. Pregnant females will usually be found in porcupine caves, which are spacious and protected from other predators. The caracal is ground-dwelling, but excels at climbing trees, which maintains its territory by urinating. He communicates with feline howl, growls and whispers, which also makes cough-like sounds. It usually lives alone, but specimens of different ages have been observed grouping together for different purposes.
The ibex after surviving the attack, photo: Jonathan High School
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