GOLDEN JACKAL (CANIS AUREUS L., 1758) IN THE FAUNA OF THE TRANSCARPATHIAN REGION

Abstract

The golden jackal (Canis aureus L.) spreads beyond its native areas in Southeastern Europe to the Central and NorthEastern Europe, particularly to the Transcarpathian region of Ukraine. The expansion of golden jackals living areas in the Middle Danube Lowland has been observed since the end of the 20th century. In the second decade of the 21st century, the golden jackal began to settle in the northern direction along the valleys of the main tributaries of the Tisza River. In this paper we discussed the history and possible causes of golden jackal expansion success in our region. We presented here also the golden jackal skull general morphology and coat fur characteristics based on materials analysis form 10 different age animals collected at various places of Transcarpathia. The presence of young animal supports the idea of local reproduction. The cranium morphology and fur characteristics were typical for the golden jackal. The golden jackal has wide ecological plasticity due to utilizing plants, fruits and animals as feed, scavenger and predator behavior, providing various and plenty fodder components for survival and reproduction. The competition with other predators and scavengers is not significant. The species uses advantages of rural agricultural areas. These allowed golden jackal expand on mostly forest-free places of valleys and on foothills in Transcarpathia.