The African wild dog is a highly social canid native to sub-Saharan Africa, easily recognized by its irregular, mottled coat of black, brown, yellow and white patches, no two individuals alike, and its large rounded ears. It lives and hunts in tight-knit packs led by a dominant breeding pair, cooperating closely to run down prey such as antelope over long chases, a technique that gives the species one of the highest hunting success rates of any large predator. Packs care communally for pups, with adults regurgitating food for young and injured pack members, and cohesive pack structure is essential to the species survival, since lone individuals rarely thrive. Once found across most of sub-Saharan Africa, the African wild dog has suffered severe range contraction and population decline due to habitat fragmentation, conflict with farmers, disease transmitted from domestic dogs and competition with lions and hyenas, and it is now one of Africa most endangered large carnivores, with only a few thousand individuals remaining in fragmented populations.
Facts
Classification
System (Realm) Relationship to PeopleAgricultural or Structural Pest 3 Living or ExtinctDerived from this species' own Conservation Status: this atlas's IUCN category list has no Extinct value, so a set conservation-status is itself evidence of living status. Identification
Distinguishing AppearanceThe bulkiest and most solidly built of the African canids, carrying an extremely variable, often asymmetrical mottled coat pattern that lets individuals recognize each other at a distance. 1 Comparison
CITES Appendix Scientific Name Conservation Status Population Estimate Connections
Child Taxon Of
In Biome
Source Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Lycaon pictus
In Ecosystem
Source African Wild Dog (Wikipedia)
Source African Wild Dog (Wikipedia)
Source African Wild Dog (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
Found In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Sources
1. African Wild Dog (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationIntroduction, first sentence
The African wild dog (Lycaon pictus), also called painted dog and Cape hunting dog, is a wild canine native to sub-Saharan Africa.
Description section, coat pattern
Colour variation is extreme, and may serve in visual identification, as African wild dogs can recognise each other at distances of 50-100 m (160-330 ft).
Conservation status section
As the largest subpopulation probably consists of fewer than 250 individuals, the African wild dog has been listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List since 1990.
Population section
An estimated 6,600 adults (including 1,400 mature individuals) live in 39 subpopulations, all threatened by habitat fragmentation, human persecution, and outbreaks of disease.
In Ecosystem: Serengeti, Hunting and diet
However, certain packs in the Serengeti specialized in hunting adult plains zebras weighing up to 240 kg (530 lb) quite frequently.
In Ecosystem: Okavango Delta, Sneeze communication and 'voting'
Populations in the Okavango Delta have been observed 'rallying' before setting out to hunt.
In Ecosystem: Kruger National Park, Social and reproductive behaviour
The African wild dog have strong social bonds, stronger than those of sympatric lions and spotted hyenas; thus, solitary living and hunting are extremely rare in the species.
View the Source 2. Wikipedia: African wild dog
system (MediaWiki batch-API article extract states it plainly)
The African wild dog is a specialized hunter of terrestrial ungulates, mostly hunting at dawn and dusk, but it also displays diurnal activity.
Introduction
As the largest subpopulation probably consists of fewer than 250 individuals, the African wild dog has been listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List since 1990.
View the Source3. Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Lycaon pictus
Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of ZoologyConservation Status: CITES
CITES No special status
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Lycaon pictus occasionally kills livestock and important game animals.
In Biome: Chaparral, Habitat Regions, biome: chaparral
chaparral chaparral
View the Source Wikidata: African Wild Dog
Wikidata Q173651, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Catalogue of Life
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of LifeChild Taxon Of: CanidaeView the Source Reader Challenges (0)
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