Cape Town’s beloved caracal Hermes dies after being hit by car

The Urban Caracal Project has confirmed the tragic death of Hermes after he was hit by a car earlier this week.

MUST READ | Rats are trending! FIVE things to know about the Woolworths chicken-loving rodents

In a Facebook post on Thursday, the project posted a heartbreaking statement.

WATCH | There are two types of people when encountering an alligator: Which one are you?

We have lost an icon.

The Urban Caracal Project is heartbroken to report that our 33rd tagged caracal on the project, Hermes, was hit by a car early on Tuesday morning.

He was hit on Philip Kgosana Drive, one the main arterial roads into Cape Town’s city center. The collision happened at 5:45am but was reported to us later in the day. He was identified by his blue ear tag. As part of our project, we collect caracal roadkill often, sometimes multiple times a month. It is always hard but finding a tagged cat, and one with such personality who was so well-known and loved by all of us, was devastating. As wildlife ecologists, we should remain objective about our study animals — but how could we not grow to love this beautiful, brave, determined character.

We first met Hermes in August 2018 when he had been hit by a car near Kloof Nek, but luckily survived to be rehabbed and released by our team and the SPCA Wildlife Unit. It is a testament to his remarkable life and resilience that we have had a flood of messages from the public. So many people have written to ask about him, and already the posts and news articles have started to appear. He was a living symbol of the adaptability of wildlife staking out a life on the urban edge. His story inspired many and raised important awareness for both urban caracals and the broader conservation of Cape Town’s wildlife. Indeed, this is the aim of the Urban Caracal Project.

We are still processing his death and how best to pay tribute to him. Please look out for our next few posts documenting and celebrating his extraordinary life.

If you would like to support the project and our ongoing work to understand the threats to caracals like Hermes and how best to conserve them, please consider donating (http://www.urbancaracal.org/support). We are currently working on signage to try to reduce roadkill, as well as testing for other major threats to the population, like disease and pollutant exposure.

WARNING | Kruger National Park: Hyenas and lion feast on giraffe – PICTURES