Dhole

The dhole is a wild canid native to South, Southeast and East Asia, though its range has contracted sharply and it now survives mainly in fragmented populations across India, Southeast Asia and parts of China. Reddish-brown in color with a bushy black-tipped tail, it is highly social, living and hunting in packs that can number a dozen or more animals, cooperating to bring down prey considerably larger than any individual dhole, including deer and wild pigs. The species communicates with an unusually varied vocal repertoire, including a distinctive whistling call used to regroup pack members across dense forest, which has earned it the nickname the whistling dog. Dholes are diurnal hunters, active mainly by day, and pack members share food and help raise pups communally. Habitat loss, depletion of prey species, disease from domestic dogs and persecution by farmers have driven a steep decline across its range, and the species is classified as endangered, with an estimated total population of only a few thousand mature individuals.