Qasr-e Shirin, IRNA – Director of the Provincial Environment Protection Department in Gilan Gharb Gholamreza Mohammadi announced the presentation of a rare species of caracal cat in the Ghalajeh Protected Area.
Mohammadi told the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) that a rare species of caracal has been sighted for the first time in the Ghalajeh Protected Area in Kermanshah Province, Iran.
He added that from the four species of rare cats registered in Kermanshah Province, three species have been observed and recorded in Gilan Gharb city.
The Caracal or Lynx, an endangered wild cat also called the desert’s black-ear, is one of the heaviest and fastest subfamilies of cats living in the Middle East and Africa. Predatory cats, known for their extraordinary speed, talent, and intelligence in hunting, have fascinated many hunters. In the past, in India and Iran, caracal was used to hunt birds, rabbits, or young gazelles.
Caracals providentially are present across most regions of eastern and central Iran, including Fars and northern Khuzestan but there are also some concerns over the status of populations not just in Iran but also in the Central Asian Republics and also in Pakistan.
Dry steppes and semi-deserts of Kavir National Park, Tooran National Park, Bahram-e Goor Protected Area, Saghand Yazd, Abbasabad Naeen, Naybandan Wildlife Refuge, Sistan-Baluchestan, Khorasan, Masjedsoleyman, and Kermanshah are all listed as caracal habitats in the country.
Apart from this rare species, various other species of animals also live in this desert, which has been able to distinguish it from other deserts and has attracted the attention of many tourists.
Gilan Gharb is located to the west of Kermanshah Province near Ilam and enjoys a temperate climate.
Source: Islamic Republic News Agency – IRNA
