Agra: In a remarkable joint operation led by Wildlife SOS and the Uttar Pradesh Forest Department an adult male golden jackal was rescued from an open well in Bajaria village, located in Pinahat of Agra. The animal was deemed fit and later released in a nearby suitable habitat.

Residents of the village were startled by the sound of distress cries from a dry well. Upon further investigation, they discovered a golden jackal trapped inside the narrow space who had no chance to escape. They immediately contacted the local forest department officers, who quickly reached out to Wildlife SOS on their helpline asking for their expert assistance.

A two-member team from the wildlife conservation NGO rushed to the location with the necessary equipment to ensure a safe and efficient rescue. In an hour-long rescue operation, the Wildlife SOS team carefully lowered a specially designed cage into the nearly 40-foot-deep well and extricated the frightened jackal.

Following a thorough on-site medical examination, the golden jackal was deemed to be in good health and was released back into its natural habitat nearby.

Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder of Wildlife SOS said, “Open wells pose a significant threat to wild animals with approximately 8.7 million such wells in India. This successful rescue highlights the importance of community involvement in wildlife conservation.”

Baiju Raj MV, Director of Conservation Projects at Wildlife SOS, shared his thoughts on the rescue: "The jackal was visibly frightened on being in such a stressful scenario. We can see the direct impact of man-made infrastructures fragmenting natural habitats of wild animals.”

Golden jackals i.e. Canis aureus, are found in the Indian subcontinent and play a very important role in forest ecology. They are omnivorous and feed on various small mammals, birds, fish, hares and even fruits.

Unfortunately, golden jackals are frequent victims of hunting, wildlife trafficking, human-wildlife conflict and highway accidents. This species is protected under Schedule II of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and has an estimated population of 80,000 in the wild.