Watch This Insanely Athletic Caracal Cat Go Airborne and Snatch a Flying Bird

Written by Colby Maxwell
Updated: October 18, 2023
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If you think you’ve seen some impressive feats of agility, wait until you see this video with a caracal cat snatching a bird. The caracal is a medium-sized wildcat that lives in Africa and Asia. Next, you’re about to see what makes this cat one of the best hunters on the planet, even if it’s quite a bit smaller than large cats like a lion.

Check Out The Video Below!

Take a peek at this amazingly agile big cat catching a bird in midair! It looks to be anywhere from 8 to ten feet off of the ground, you won’t want to miss this!

In the video, you can see a caracal crouched down. The cat has its sights set on something ahead of it in the sky. Suddenly, the cat bursts up from the ground and leaps into the air like a spring releasing tension! In total slow motion, the bird slowly enters the frame, and it’s clear that the caracal has been eyeing this bird as a potential dinner.

As the caracal leaps into the air, it snatches the bird with a razor-sharp claw. Next, it does something incredible: while in the air, it transfers the snagged bird from one claw into its paws together, then it transfers the bird to its mouth so it can land on both of its front feet while they are free.

Types of wild cats - Caracal

Caracals are a type of small wildcat and are known for their incredible feats of agility.

©iStock.com/StuPorts

To make things even more impressive, the caracal snatches the bird all while flying in a near-perfect circle, as the momentum from its jump carries it around like in a strange summersault. It looks like a professional acrobat that could show out against even the Olympians that humans put forward for being agile!

One of the Fastest Cats On Earth

The caracal is one of more than 30 species of small wildcats, and it is the fastest of them all. With its incredible athleticism, it can hunt birds, rodents, rabbits, and even gazelles. It is also a solitary and nocturnal animal, so it prefers to hunt alone at night. In the video clip, you can see it’s near sunset, which makes it the perfect time for caracal hunting!

The caracal snatches birds and other prey up with ease thanks to its fast speed.

©iStock.com/StuPorts

The next time you watch a sports event, remember that there’s a cat out there that can do things that humans can only dream of. The caracal is truly an insanely athletic animal and one that we should respect and protect.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © iStock.com/StuPorts


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About the Author

Colby is a writer at A-Z Animals primarily covering outdoors, unique animal stories, and science news. Colby has been writing about science news and animals for five years and holds a bachelor's degree from SEU. A resident of NYC, you can find him camping, exploring, and telling everyone about what birds he saw at his local birdfeeder.

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