Khafre is from the African population of caracals, and he has come from the Darling Downs Zoo in Australia.
Khafre is from the African population of caracals, and he has come from the Darling Downs Zoo in Australia.
Hamilton Zoo welcomed a new resident today: 2-year-old caracal Khafre.
Caracals are wild cats native to Africa and Asia - Khafre, named after a pharaoh buried in one of the great three pyramids, has come from the African subspecies.
Khafre is currently New Zealand’s only caracal and the first one since the Wellington Zoo had to euthanise its sister caracals on medical and animal welfare grounds, in 2022.
Khafre, weighing in at 15kg, arrived in Hamilton from the Darling Downs Zoo in Australia a month ago and he has been in quarantine since while getting comfortable in his new home.
Today, the public could lock eyes with him for the first time.
The caracal enclosure at the Hamilton Zoo. Photo / Jesse Wood
Hamilton Zoo’s curator of exotics, Mark Turner, said the zoo was excited to welcome Khafre.
“It’s quite a big deal for us and obviously new animals are always exciting, but we’ve never had a caracal in Hamilton before, and even in the country since the Wellington caracals.
“It is essentially a new species to New Zealand in many ways and we’re excited to be a part of that journey.”
He said caracals lived longer in captivity, reaching up to 16 to 17 years compared to being in the wild with a lifespan of early teens.
“It’s mainly because you’re providing them with all the care they need, a good balanced diet, and less stress, which increases their life span.”
Turner said while Northern African caracals were rare due to habitat loss, countries in Southern Africa considered them a problem with farmers having conflicts with them.
He said caracals were predators.
“They’re incredible jumpers and can jump at least 3 to 4m high. They can run pretty fast too just like most animals when they’re hunting, they can put up the speed. They’re very efficient little predators.
“They eat a lot of small mammals and birds... Birds are quite popular so what they’ll do sometimes is flush the birds out of the grass and as they fly, then jump and catch them in the air.
“They eat a lot of smaller animals but they can sometimes tackle animals that are double or triple their size.”
Khafre has been in quarantine getting used to his enclosure, which opened today for public display. Photo / Hamilton Zoo
Turner said caracals were part of the feline family, but their facial features would set them apart.
“They have cool and striking faces, and their ears are quite distinct. They have long and pointy ears with big long black tuffs at the end which is what sets them apart from other cats.”
Initially, the zoo hoped to secure a pair of caracals as part of a breeding programme.
“Initially, we were hoping for two caracals, a male and female, but we could only get the male. We are currently in the process of trying to locate an appropriate female to try and pair him with,” Turner said.
Meet the Hamilton Zoo's latest member, Khafre the caracal. Photo / Hamilton Zoo
“We want to become a part of the breeding programme so we’re hoping to bring a female into breed but we don’t know when this will happen.”
While the hunt for a female caracal continues, Turner said the zoo would spend time learning Khafre’s likes and dislikes.
“He loves chicken, it’s his favourite food. We’ve given him a variety of food and different types of meat, which he does seem to be taking a liking to, but chicken remains his favourite.
“The guys are giving him enrichments but we haven’t tried actual toys at this stage. We are hoping that once he’s more comfortable around people, and he is getting to that point, we can do more cool and interactive stuff with him safely.”
Turner said the caracal was a lot more comfortable in his environment now than when he first came, and he was also more confident in coming out and interacting with zoo staff through the mesh now.
The caracal enclosure is now open for public display.
Malisha Kumar is a multimedia journalist based in Hamilton. She joined the Waikato Herald in 2023 after working for Radio 1XX in Whakatāne.
