The mother of the family is always wary. No wonder: humans with guns shoot to kill. A few years ago, hunters surprised a group of jackals and shot sixteen of them. At least, that was what was written in a national daily newspaper. The massacre took place near the village of Ignatovo. This is only 6 km SE from the place where the mother gave birth to her three pups. A photo of the Ignatovo killing had the following explanatory text (an excerpt):
‘Hunters defeated an army of jackals. Ignatovo hunting team shot dead 16 predators in a single outing. The predators of Zlatiya Plain suffered heavy defeat by the hands of the hunting team of the north-western village of Ignatovo. In a single day, the sharp-shooters brought down 16 jackals, thus saving scores of birds and hares from attacks by the predators.’
With such neighbours one has to be careful – it is a matter of life or death. Interested researchers claim that jackals in the country rarely get beyond 3.5 years of age.
The Mother does not fit in this. She is six or maybe seven years old in the picture. The Father of the breeding couple – the alpha-male, or Big Man – is of the same age. And so is the Uncle, possibly brother of both. We call him White Back because of his whitish fur. White Back is critical for the survival of the family – of this much will be said later.
