Canis adustus
The Side-striped Jackal is the lesser known of South Africa’s two jackal species and far less common than the Black-backed Jackal.
Side-striped Jackals are mainly nocturnal, active from dusk to dawn, and by day they den in burrows, rocky outcrops or thickets. They hunt small mammals, birds, reptiles and invertebrates, will eat fruit and berries and will also consume carrion if it is available. They are usually seen singly, in territorial pairs or in family groups.
Female Side-striped Jackals have litters of 2-6 puppies, usually during spring and summer in South Africa, after a 2 month gestation. The male of the pair will bring food back to the den for the female and puppies. The young ones are weaned before they’re 3 months old, but stay with the parents for almost a year. Fully grown, Side-striped Jackals weigh about 10kg and stand about 45cm high at the shoulder. They have a life expectancy in the wild of 10 to 12 years.
Although Side-striped Jackals usually occur at low densities, they’re not endangered and according to the IUCN is of least concern. They’re found throughout the moist savanna habitats of sub-Saharan Africa, from West Africa to Ethiopia, and southwards as far as Angola in the west and South Africa in the south-east. In our country they used to be found only in the north of Kwazulu-Natal and the Lowveld of Mpumalanga and Limpopo, but it appears that they are expanding their range of late. The South African population is estimated at a maximum of around 9,000.
DeWetsWild 
I enjoyed your photos of the rarer species of jackal – very exciting to see them!
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We savour every encounter we have with the side-striped jackal!
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Sjoe, kyk daardie regop oortjies! Op sommige van jou foto’s smelt die jakkalsie mooi saam met die omgewing.
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Ideaal omdat hulle soveel meer teruggetrokke is as hul rooijakkals-nefies!
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How lucky you were to catch sight of them, Dries, and cubs too. That’s extra special.
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Always wonderful to see these enigmas of our wild places, Tracy.
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It is good to see these animals through your lens – I haven’t actually seen one for years!
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It’s another of those species that always gets me excited when we see them.
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