Felines are perhaps the most successful predators among mammals. More species of felines exist than of canines. Let;s talk about what cats, other than Lion, Leopard and Cheetah, you can hunt in Africa. There are three: Caracal, Serval, and African Wild Cat.
 

How to Hunt Small Felines in Africa

The problem with Serval and Caracal hunting in Africa is that the species are both secretive and territorial. The home range of a bit old male may be up to 32 square kilometres in size, and within this range they have areas they prefer to the others. Successful hunting depends on the PHs knowing the territory of the concession, and experience in hunting small felines.

In South Africa Caracal and African Wild Cat are often harvested opportunistically, that is, when a chance presents itself during a regular plains game hunt. In fact, one of the biggest Caracal trophies in South Africa was killed as the cat killed the antelope the hunter was stalking before the hunter’s eyes. With Serval, and with all small felines in other countries, it won’t work too well, because the permit must be obtained (and paid for) in advance. And if you paid for the permit, and don’t want it to be wasted, you’d have to resort to a dedicated feline hunting method.

While felines are usually nocturnal, Serval is most active during twilight, and may hunt at day as well as at night. Spot-and-stalkor still-hunting at a place where a good male is known to hunt can work well. You will probably need to spend at least three days before you can set your sights on the cat, but overall, the Serval is perhaps the easiest of African small felines to hunt deliberately. The Caracal, by contrast, could be the hardest. In the days of old hounders used to set their packs on Caracal to prepare the dogs for Leopard hunting. Now, however, hunting small felines with packs of hounds is illegal pretty much everywhere except Mozambique, but Mozambique has a moratorium on small cat hunting.

Why hunt small felines?

If you look up the major conservation threats for either African Wild Cat, Serval, or Caracal, you’ll see that they are illegal hunting for their beautiful fur (especially Serval, which can be passed for a leopard), habitat loss, and retaliatory or preventive killing for real or perceived threat to domestic animals. True enough, the Serval is a notorious poultry thief, and the Caracal, as mentioned above, preys readily on goat and sheep. You will also see that hunting concessions help combat all the three evils. They fight illegal harvest in all forms, protect wilderness from logging and conversion into farms and pastures, but most importantly, they give value to wildlife for the locals. Jobs created by a hunting concession and tips from a successful hunter are worth much more than a couple of chicken or a goat!

But that only works if the species has value – that is, can be hunted (today or in future). This makes the conservation aspect of hunting Serval, Caracal and African Wild Cat perhaps the most significant. It shouldn’t overshadow the fact, however, that these small felines are a very challenging hunting quarry. And, in hunting, what’s challenging is interesting. Few hunters will go to Africa to hunt only Serval or Caracal. But if you wonder whether you should add variety to your plains game hunt by including one of these small felines, give it a try!