Caracal / Desert Lynx / Red Lynx Spiritual Meaning

Are images of Caracals coming to your thoughts very often?

When you see a Caracal in your thoughts, it means that you want go ahead with your work even if there is opposition from others.

The symbolism of a Caracal can stand for:

• Solitary.
• Speed.
• Agility.
• Shyness.
• Protective.
• Opportunistic.
• Silent.

The Caracal is a small wild cat that is found in arid, semi-desert and scrub lands of Africa, Central Asia, Southwest Asia and India. It is also called the Desert Lynx but does not fall into the category to which the real Lynx belongs.

The Caracal has a long tuft of hair at the tip of its long ears. It has long hind legs and a comparatively short tail. The color of its fur is tawny grey or reddish brown and the belly and underside is whitish. It has a dark lines running down the center of its forehead and from the edge of each eye to its nostrils. There are faint brown patches over its eyes.

The Caracal is a solitary animal by nature, though sometimes it pairs up with another for hunting and makes its home in caves, cavities and burrows. It prefers to live in those places where there is less rainfall but abundant cover. It is highly territorial and marks its territory by urine and sometimes defecates in open places to mark its territory. Territories of the two female Caracals normally do not overlap but the territory of a male Caracal may overlap those which belong to one or more females. It defends its territory aggressively against the intrusion by others.

The symbolism of the Caracal is that it tells you to carry on your life in a meaningful way even though you may not have another person to share your burden with.

Most of the activities carried out by the Caracal are carried out at night time. The Caracal is very shy and normally hides from human eyes. Just like all other small cats, it is very agile and opportunistic.

The Caracal does not run after its prey, but bides its time and stalks its prey silently. At an opportune moment it attacks its prey with lightning speed and kills it by biting its head. If the prey is bigger, it kills its prey by biting the neck as well as raking it with its claws.

The symbolism of the Caracal teaches you to do your work quietly by waiting for the moment when it can give you the best result and without creating any fuss about it.

The Caracal is not a scavenger and does not eat from the kill made by other animals. It eats only whatever it kills itself and if it is unable to eat the whole of the prey during one meal, then it covers the carcass and comes to eat it later. Sometimes it carries the carcass up into the trees to keep it safe from other predators. This symbolism teaches you not to waste what you have got but to save whatever is left for use in the future.

The Caracal preys on small animals like mice, weasels, otters, rabbits, pole-cats and birds like pigeons ducks, guinea-fowl and partridges. It also preys on antelopes, mountain goats and sometimes small gazelles.

Sometimes it attacks livestock like lambs also. It eats the chest, ribs, buttocks and other fleshy parts of the prey it kills and unlike other cats does not devour the stomach or the intestines or the feathers of the prey.

The Caracal can live without water for a long time and does not have any trouble living in arid or semi-desert areas. It fulfills the requirement of water from the body fluids of the prey it eats. This symbolism of the Caracal tells you that you have the ability to work longer under adverse conditions which is a great plus point for you, and you should always take advantage of this ability.

A Caracal can appear in your thoughts when

• You feel lonely.
• You are out of options.
• You are tired.
• You feel exposed.
• Your responses have become slow.

You can call upon the Caracal symbolism when

• You want to go ahead but you are not able to garner any support.
• You want to finish your work as fast and as silently as possible.
• You are looking for an opportunity when your hard labor will give the best results.
• You want to be choosy about what you should do and what you should not.
• You are feeling lethargic but you know speed is vital to get what you want in life.