The Quiet Operator of the Night
While the Black-backed Jackal steals lambs and headlines, the Side-striped Jackal works in silence. Less aggressive, more elusive, and built for bushveld and forest edges, this jackal is Africa’s introverted scavenger.
With a greyer coat, white-tipped tail, and faint pale stripes along the flanks, the Side-striped Jackal is often mistaken for its black-backed cousin. But it behaves very differently.
This one isn’t looking for a fight. It’s looking for a gap.
Subtle, Solitary, and Strategic
Side-striped Jackals:
- Are more omnivorous than other jackals—eating fruit, insects, carrion, small mammals, and even tubers
- Prefer dense cover and forest margins over open grasslands
- Avoid conflict, often yielding to larger predators and feeding at off-peak hours
- Are nocturnal, making them harder to monitor and manage
While they will take small prey like rodents or ground-nesting birds, they’re rarely responsible for major livestock or lamb predation. In fact, most landowners never know they’re even there—unless one turns up on camera trap.
Should You Manage Them?
In most areas, Side-striped Jackals are not considered a nuisance species, unless they become unusually habituated to human food sources or are found scavenging at kill sites.
Instead, they:
- Help clean up carcasses and waste
- Keep rodent numbers in check
- Act as subtle indicators of predator pressure and bush balance
They’re often outcompeted by black-backed jackals and hyenas, and their numbers are naturally lower in high-pressure areas.
Field Signs
- Tracks: Similar to domestic dogs—clawed, oval-shaped, 4 toes
- Scat: Often full of berries or insect shells
- Vocalisations: Not yippy or loud like black-backed jackals—more growls, whines, and low calls
