Each week I plan to feature an amazing creature, admiring God's fantastic artistry. Hopefully it’ll brighten someone’s day to see something new and interesting if they haven’t seen it before. : )
Welcome to "Antique Gold Animals" month, where we'll be featuring animals of said beautiful hue.
(Lovely photograph taken by Theo Stikkelman (CC BY 2.0))
The Golden Jackal
Scientific Name: Canis aureus
Region: Northwestern Europe through Southern Asia (Thanks for the correction, @skekteksfurby! : ) )
Size: About 16" (~40cm) tall at the shoulder and 37"-43"(~95cm-110cm) long, including the tail
Interesting Notes: This beautiful canid is actually more closely related to wolves and coyotes than true jackals. They have an unusual family structure centered around one monogamous adult pair with 1-2 adult "helpers" who do not breed, but stay with the pair for a year to help raise their new litter before moving on.