Golden jackal spotted in Drenthe, third ever seen in NL

A golden jackal was recently spotted in Drenthe, forestry association Staatsbosbeheer announced on Friday. This is the third ever sighting of a golden jackal in the Netherlands, and the first to be spotted outside the Veluwe.

The Drenthe sighting happened by luck - the golden jackal walked past a wildlife camera on November 22nd, according to Staatsbosbeheer.

The first two sightings of golden jackals in the Netherlands happened on the Veluwe in 2016 and 2017. A third sighting was reported in June 2018, but that sighting was later scrapped because it turned out to involve a faked video for a tick bite campaign. 

The golden jackal used to be found mainly in the area from the Balkans to Bangladesh. The animal has been extending its habitat into the rest of Europe since the 1950s. The largest prey golden jackals can catch are red deer calves, though the animal mainly lives on rodents, fruit and human garbage, according to NU.nl.

In August researchers wrote in Nature Today that Netherlands is a suitable habitat for the golden jackals, with room for around six thousand of these animals.