Injured golden jackal rescued
A golden Jackal sustained serious injuries from a piece of metal clutch wire wrapped tightly around its right forelimb leg and it was in pain the Wildlife SOS Rapid Response Unit rescued the animal.
The Jackal is currently undergoing treatment.
A resident of Sainik Farms in Delhi spotted the wounded canid in an unconscious state while out on a morning walk on Tuesday, and immediately alerted the Wildlife SOS.
Following receiving the call, a team rushed to the location and rescued the animal and took it for emergency treatment.
Upon closer inspection, it was found that the jackal was severely wounded by a metal clutch wire that was tightly wrapped around its right forelimb, said the rescue team.
After carefully removing the wire, the NGO’s veterinarians treated the animal’s leg and it is currently under medical observation. The jackal was identified as a male, estimated to be three years old.
The area adjacent to Sainik Farms has a small forest patch which does not extend to a larger area but residents often spotted porcupines, civet cats and nilgais, and even catch rare glimpses of jackals there.
Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder and CEO, Wildlife SOS said: “Thanks to the timely rescue call of the local resident and swift response of our team, we were able to rush to the aid of the jackal. Even though the wire has been removed and treatment administered, our veterinarians are still monitoring the animal constantly to check its progress.”
Wasim Akram, Deputy Director – Special Projects, Wildlife SOS said: “With more and more habitats being fragmented, wildlife sightings in urban areas have become very common, and the jackal is a very adaptive and ubiquitous canid species. It is very important to acknowledge the presence of wild animals around us and learn to co-exist with them.”
The golden Jackal is native to the Indian subcontinent and plays a significant ecological role in forest ecosystems. They are omnivorous in nature and feed on a variety of small mammals, birds, fishes, hares and even fruits. Unfortunately, threats such as habitat fragmentation, hunting, wildlife trafficking, man-animal conflict and road accidents threaten their existence. The species is protected under Schedule II of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and its estimated wild population is said to be 80,000.
