Servals are only found in Africa and are widely distributed south of the Sahara. While they do not live in the desert, they are often found in grassland habitats near a water source. The serval has been described as a nocturnal animal, but researchers have also observed them hunting midday during cooler times of the year.

Because of their many different hunting skills, the serval is considered to be one of the most successful predator of the cat world. When hunting rodents, this cat will use its large ears to listen for movement underground. Once they have stalked their prey, the serval will pounce on the rodent and stun it with a paw. Using their long hind legs, they can jump almost 10 feet into the air to knock down a bird or insect in flight.

Although commonly found throughout some areas of Africa, serval numbers are declining. They occasionally are blamed by ranchers for killing their goats and sheep, which are usually preyed upon by jackals or caracals. However, since they are successful at hunting rodents, servals can be very helpful to local grain farmers.