sabi sabi wild facts: african wild dog
The African Wild Dog, Lycaon Pictus, is part of the dog family Canidae which also includes domestic dogs. Other canids in the family are wolves, jackals, coyotes and foxes. Their scientific name actually means painted wolf, which is derived from the Greek word for wolf, and the Latin word meaning painted. This species which only occurs in Africa, has been called by many names other than African Wild Dog, including Cape Hunting Dog, Painted Dog, Painted Wolf, Painted Hunting Dog and Spotted Dog. It has even been called an Ornate Wolf.
Wild dogs weigh between 20-30kgs, with the males being just slightly larger than the females. They have large ears capable of hearing the slightest sound, and excellent eyesight which they need for hunting. Each individual wild dog has a patch pattern on its fur which is as unique as a fingerprint, and all have a characteristic white tip of the tail.Unlike other dogs which have 5, African Wild Dogs have only four toes on each foot. They also have very strong jaws with an extremely high bite force, as is evidenced by the large quantity of bone in their diet.
The dogs have huge territories, their preferred range being mostly savannah plains or fairly open bushveld. The species lives in a complex social society; there is a dominant male and female in the pack, and only this alpha pair breeds, with the rest of the group being subservient. Litters are born in dens, which are generally abandoned aardvark or warthog burrows. In Southern Africa most litters are born in winter, with as few as 2 and as many as 19 pups in a litter. Mortality rates are very high, and few survive to adulthood.
The pups start running with the pack at the age of about 3 months, at which stage the den is abandoned.
African Wild Dogs hunt as a pack, showing well-developed team-work. This hunting method makes them one of the most successful of all predators. They are crepuscular hunters, chasing down their prey mainly at dawn or dusk. They run their prey into complete exhaustion, and once their victim is at a standstill, the dogs tear it to pieces. Prey species are very diverse, but impala and young wildebeest, when available, are a favourite part of their diet. However, they have been known to kill animals as large as kudu or as small as rats or birds. After a successful hunt, if there are youngsters, the pack returns to their den and regurgitates food for the female and pups, and any weak members of the pack which were left behind.
This is one of the most endangered mammal species in Africa, their numbers declining due to loss of habitat and territory, hunting and susceptibility to diseases spread by domestic livestock. Competition from other carnivores such as lions and hyaenas may also be a factor in their declining numbers. The dogs are already extinct in large parts of Central and West Africa, and now mainly occur in small numbers in sub-Saharan Africa, mostly in protected wildlife areas.
At Sabi Sabi we are very privileged that African Wild Dogs have chosen to den on our reserve many times, giving the rangers and their guests ample opportunity to photograph and document this highly endangered species' struggle to survive.
