The caracal was a species of feline.
When he was five, Ruon Tarka atomized a live caracal to prove a theory for the first time. He would later recall that "all anyone could do was complain about how messy it was." (DIS: "The Examples")
Tarka may be referring to a Lunarian caracal (β) native to Risa, introduced in Star Trek Online, rather than the caracal of Earth.