The species is very adaptable. As a generalist and opportunistic species, the Golden Jackal is capable of adapting to a wide range of habitats (Šalek et al. 2014). In Europe, family groups have been seen from sea level to 1,800 m (Lapini et al. 2016). The species is present in Mediterranean coastal vegetation, continental mixed forests, marshlands, agricultural landscapes, semi-urban and, sporadically, in urban habitats. Despite its generality, the species typically favours mosaic agricultural landscapes (Šalek et al. 2014, Ranc et al. 2022), as well as marshes and wetlands, areas at intermediate proximity from human settlements and where snow cover duration is short (Ranc et al. 2022). The species can thrive in human-dominated landscapes (Fenton et al. 2021). Population densities of Golden Jackal can vary considerably, most likely in response to available food resources, intraguild competition (especially with the Grey Wolf) and abiotic factors. In farmland landscapes of the Balkan Peninsula, local densities can range between 0.6 and 1.1 territorial group/10km² with maximum up to 4.8 territorial group/10 km² in shrub-herbaceous and heterogeneous agriculture landscapes (Šalek et al. 2014). The species is able to disperse rapidly through human-dominated landscapes (Lanszki et al. 2018), which explains the occurrence of vagrant individuals far from source populations (Rutkowski et al. 2015).

Across its European distribution, the Golden Jackal is considered an omnivorous and opportunistic forager able to exploit a wide range of available foods (Lanszki et al. 2022). Important diet items include small mammals (Lanszki et al. 2010), livestock carcasses and slaughter remains (Lanszki et al. 2009, 2010; Ćirović et al. 2016), game species, mostly consumed as viscera from hunting leftovers (Bošković et al. 2013), birds (Lanszki et al. 2009), as well as plants and fruits (Lanszki et al. 2009, 2010; Penezić and Ćirović 2015). European jackals mostly feed on domestic animals (slaughter remains; on average 40%), wild ungulates (20%) and rodents (19%) (Ćirović et al. 2016). Several other aspects of Golden Jackal ecology, especially sociobiology, remain poorly understood (Krofel et al. 2020).

In Europe, the Golden Jackal is present throughout the southeastern part of the continent (Ranc et al. 2022) and reproduces as far north as Austria (Hatlauf and Hackländer 2016), Czechia (Jirku et al. 2018), Germany (Tillmann et al. 2020), Italy (Lapini et al. 2016), Poland (Kowalczyk et al. 2020) and Slovakia (Guimarães et al. 2019). A subpopulation is currently developing in Estonia (Männil and Ranc 2022) and Latvia. Dispersers are being recorded throughout the continent, including in Finland (Kojola et al. in press), Norway (Sørensen and Lindsø 2021), Spain and the Netherlands. In some cases, long-distance dispersers have been recorded locally over several years and may have therefore settled as in Denmark, France and Switzerland. The species generally occurs between sea level and 800 m, and occasionally up to 1,800 m, in the Italian Alps (Lapini et al. 2016). The classification of countries' presence, origin and seasonality is based on the 2012-2016 IUCN SSC Large Carnivore Initiative for Europe (LCIE) assessment. For countries that have experienced important changes since 2016 (France, Finland, Germany, Norway, Spain), the classification is based on newly gathered records. The correspondence between the LCIE species online layers (SPOIS) classification and the IUCN Red List criteria is provided in Supplementary Information (see Table 2).

The Golden Jackal has a large Eurasian distribution extending from Southeast Asia to Central Europe. The species is present throughout the Indian subcontinent, the Middle East, the Caucasus and southeastern Europe (Sillero-Zubiri et al. 2004, Trouwborst et al. 2015).

1. Pannonian-Balkan
The Pannonian-Balkan subpopulation extends throughout southeastern Europe and reaches Central Europe and the Baltic states (Ranc et al. 2022). It ranges from Greece to Ukraine in the east, to Austria, Czechia, Slovakia and Germany in the west, and to Estonia in the north. The subpopulation occurs in northeastern Greece (Central Macedonia region, and Eastern Macedonia Region and Thrace), North Macedonia (mainly along the Vardar Valley), most of Bulgaria (except for the main mountain ranges), Serbia (throughout most of the country), Romania (mainly in the Danube lowlands but expanding in Transylvania and in the eastern and western parts), in Bosnia and Herzegovina (mainly in the northern part), Croatia (mainly in Slavonia), throughout Slovenia, throughout Hungary, Austria (mostly eastern parts), Czechia (fragmented), Slovakia (south and east), Ukraine (primarily along the Black Sea coast) and Estonia (coastal areas).

2. Adriatic
The Adriatic subpopulation ranges from Greece to Italy, along the Adriatic coast (Ranc et al. 2022). It occurs in Greece (around Athens and the northwest), Albania, Montenegro (including the interior of the country), southern Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia (Dalmatia and Istria), western Slovenia and Italy (Venezia-Friuli-Giulia and Veneto provinces). The boundaries of this population are not well understood in southern Greece, near Athens (possible contacts with the Peloponnese population) as well as in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Slovenia (possible contacts with the Pannonian-Balkan population). The Golden Jackals in Italy are the result of an admixture between Adriatic and Pannonian-Balkan origins (Fabbri et al.2014), with a higher prevalence of individuals from the Adriatic subpopulation.

3. Peloponnese
The Peloponnese subpopulation is distributed throughout the Peloponnese peninsula (Greece), except for small areas in the Northwest and Northeast (Ranc et al. 2022).

4. Samos Island
The Samos subpopulation is restricted to Samos Island (Greece) (Ranc et al. 2022).

Distribution data are incomplete/not available for European Russia and some other parts of eastern Europe.

The Golden Jackal is listed in Annex V of the Habitats Directive, 92/43 EC as a species of community interest. The species’ status varies at the national level (see Trouwborst et al. 2015 for a full review, including a discussion of some of the management confusion due to recent range expansion and inadequate legal interpretation). The species (as a wider species concept that included African Wolf Canis lupaster) was previously assessed (Giannatos and Kryštufek 2007) in 2006 as Near Threatened for the EU 27 members states.

1. Pannonian-Balkan
Golden Jackals are fully protected in North Macedonia. They are hunted in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine. The species is unprotected in Estonia, Greece and Czechia. Its status is variable in Austria from region to region.

2. Adriatic
The species is fully protected in Albania and Italy. Golden Jackals are hunted in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Slovenia. They are unprotected in Greece.

3. Peloponnese
The species is unprotected.

4. Samos Island
The species is unprotected.