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Two Golden Jackals Provided the First Confirmed Record in Riyadh Province

Golden jackal running through open habitat
Conservation · Population & status

Two golden jackals (Canis aureus) photographed by camera traps in King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve provided the first confirmed record of the species in Riyadh Province, Saudi Arabia. The animals were recorded on 2 October 2025, and the formal peer-reviewed record was published on 27 July 2026.

Golden jackals are widespread across much of Eurasia, but their distribution in Saudi Arabia has been documented from relatively few records. Earlier published evidence cited by the authors came from the Eastern Province, Al Jouf Province and a 2024 record in Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve in northwestern Saudi Arabia.

The Riyadh observation adds a verified occurrence in the central part of Saudi Arabia and helps fill a geographic gap in the documented Saudi distribution. It does not show when golden jackals first reached the province, how many animals are present there or whether an established breeding population occurs in the reserve.

The authors therefore call for systematic surveys to clarify the species’ population status, biology, ecology and potential threats in the newly documented area. Repeated monitoring can show whether golden jackals occur regularly in Riyadh Province and how the record fits into the species’ wider Saudi distribution.

Sources and image credit

  1. First record of golden jackal, Canis aureus, Linnaeus 1758, in Riyadh Province, Saudi ArabiaPrimary peer-reviewed distribution record published 27 July 2026. Two golden jackals were photographed by camera traps on 2 October 2025 in King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve, providing the first confirmed record in Riyadh Province. The authors call for systematic surveys of population status, biology, ecology and threats.

Image: Golden jackal (Canis aureus) running at Jawai Bandh, Rajasthan, India, 11 April 2025. Photo: Tisha Mukherjee / Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0. Representative species image; not one of the jackals recorded in Riyadh Province. · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

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