Present distribution of the Golden Jackal <i>Canis aureus</i> in the Balkans and adjacent regions

Abstract

Small, scattered, but resident, populations of Golden Jackal Canis aureus occur along the coasts of the Balkan Peninsula. The bulk of these European Jackals is concentrated in the eastern parts of the Peninsula, mainly in Bulgaria. The northern border of the resident population lies along the Danube in the Walachian Plain of Romania, and in Srem (Yugoslavia). Vagrants may appear far outside the Balkans in north‐eastern Italy, Slovenia, Austria, Hungary and Slovakia. Whilst the species is in decline in Greece, it has expanded its area in Bulgaria from = 2400 km 2 in 1962 to 80 000 km 2 in 1985, i.e. a 33‐fold range increase within 23 years.