Young caracal is released in the Cradle Moon Conservancy
The young caracal caught in Randfontein was released on the same day at a conservancy in Muldersdrift.
A caracal that had been found on a farm in Randfontein recently was safely relocated to his new forever home.
Stefan du Toit, the Transvaal branch conservation coordinator of the South African Hunters and Game Conservation Association (SAHGCA) said a farmer from the Doornfontein area, north-west of Randfontein, who wants to stay anonymous alerted him on Monday, August 23 of a young caracal that had been caught in a cage on a game farm.
“The farmer indicated that he didn’t want to kill the animal and would rather see it released in another area where it couldn’t pose any threat or cause a problem for game breeders,” Stefan said.
Stefan, in collaboration with the State’s Green Scorpions contacted some of the big game ranches in the area, and the Cradle Moon Conservancy in Muldersdrift indicated that they were willing to take and relocate the animal on their property within the conservancy.
“The Cradle Moon Conservancy was eager to take the animal because they already have a caracal population. After so many jackal had died due to rabies in that particular area it was considered a wise move so the caracal could still act according to its natural behaviour by killing and preying on small mammals that could be the reservoir hosts for various other diseases, and keep the ecology intact.”
The caracal was released on the same day in the presence of Cradle Moon Conservancy game warden, Theo Potgieter.
