Black-footed Tenacity

"Male Pogon scavenges on the leg of a stillborn springbok antelope lamb." A. Sliwa

Black-footed Cats have the reputation of being able to kill sheep or giraffe by piercing their jugular. While this legend is not true, there is no doubt these are tenacious little cats. One female in the study often took on other animals she met at night, including those much bigger than herself. Once she jumped with bared claws and fangs into the face of a black-backed jackal, an animal eight times heavier than herself.

On occasion they are able to kill hares larger and heavier than themselves as well as birds the size of a chicken. Numerous times they have stalked springbok lambs, between 2-3 kg, but never attempted to kill them.

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Help the researchers of the Black-footed Cat Working Group continue this conservation study!