WildFact
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Terrestrial Wild Animals
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Carnivorous and Omnivores Animals, Excluding Felids
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Canids (Canidae) & Hyaenids (Hyaenidae)
African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus)
African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus)
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African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus)
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 (11-30-2015, 02:21 AM)SVTIGRIS Wrote: I heard in wild dog community the pups usually are first at the dinner table and not with the adults help, I think it was schaller but i'm not sure. Certainly, I think, Hugo and Jane Van Lawick Goodall when they have been studying the wild dogs and the hyenas in the Serengeti park for several years during the seventies. They writed a book about these animals "Innocent killers". This was the first book to having described with objectivity the hyenas' and wild dogs' life which had a very very bad reputation. "Innocent killers" by Hugo and Jane Van Lawick-Goodall. 
Wild Dogs and Wild Beasts
by Adam Bannister on November 1, 2011 10 The khoikhoi called them “Gnou” after their unusual sound; the Afrikaners called them Wildebeest, or “Wild Beast,” for the menacing appearance presented by its large head, shaggy mane, pointed beard, and sharp, curved horns. They roam over much of the African grasslands, open plains and dry woodlands. Here at Londolozi they are a characteristic species of this beautiful reserve. Throughout Africa they battle in the game of survivial; competing with lions, hyenas and of course the most explosive of all…the African Wild Dog.  *This image is copyright of its original author A Wildebeest calf sticks close to her mother and the protection of the herd - Adam Bannister The African Wild Dog, also called the Hunting Dog, is a vanishing species with numbers dwindling all the time. These highly social and very intelligent animals are ferocious predators and thought by many to be the most efficient and successful hunter in the bushveld. They hunt in a pack using speed and endurance to tire out and then kill their prey. Although Impala, duiker and bushbuck are usually more in their target range, in terms of size of prey, they are fully capable of killing larger animals.  *This image is copyright of its original author Blood stained face after a successful hunt - Adam Bannister As a Game Ranger there is nothing more exciting then a pack of Wild Dogs running though the wilderness. It tests your knowledge of the pack itself, the individuals within the pack, the characteristics of the prey, the vegetation, your knowledge of the roads together with your driving capabilities. All in all it has the ingredients for an unforgettable experience… What is fascinating to watch is what happens when the Wild Dogs come across a herd of Wild beasts. A Wildebeest calf is well within the hunting capabilities of a sizable pack of dogs, so too is possibly a young cow; a bull on the other hand is a little tough for the Hunting Dogs. I have been lucky enough to watch the scenes unfold as the dogs try to isolate the youngsters in the herd only to be driven off by the very brave larger members. It makes for an intriguing couple of minutes.  *This image is copyright of its original author Last year December I was treated to an amazing stand off between the same pack of Wild Dogs and a herd of Wildebeest. At first the Wild Dogs looked like they may have had the upper hand and were seen trying to separate the youngsters from the herd, driving the male off. - Adam Bannister  *This image is copyright of its original author Both the Wild Dogs and the Wildebeest seemed out of their own league at times. - Adam Bannister  *This image is copyright of its original author The Wild Dogs lost the advantage and were driven away by the lead territorial male of the herd of Wildebeest. It was incredible to watch the bravery of the bull as he chased off the entire pack - Adam Bannister Written, photographed and filmed by Adam Bannister Nothing is as cute as Wild Dog puppies…
by Adam Bannister on July 12, 2011 4 Babies of any animal are cute…but not much can beat a baby African Wild Dog, or 7 of them for that matter! Yesterday the much loved wild dog pack came across onto Londolozi and bought with them their precious cargo.  *This image is copyright of its original author The definition of cute - Adam Bannister We sat enthralled as they played around the vehicles and ran up and down the road. Play time turned into complete hysteria and delight when an adult returned back to the spot with a blood soiled face. They greeted him like a long lost hero before following in hot pursuit.  *This image is copyright of its original author Regrouping after a successful kill - Adam Bannister Before they got to the site of his impala kill, three hyaenas stepped in and ruined the party.Stealing the kill from under their noses. The dogs erred on the side of caution and led their puppies away from the scene…the reward was not worth the risk!  *This image is copyright of its original author A very special bond unites the pack - Adam Bannister One wonderful aspect of the Wild Dog lifestyle is that the entire family looks after the youngsters. The hunting members of the pack return to the den where they regurgitate meat for the nursing female and pups.These pups are at the stage where they are starting to be led further and further afield from the den site and will shortly start to be led out on ‘hunting missions’.  *This image is copyright of its original author Photographing Wild Dogs by Shan Varty Written, filmed by: Adam Bannister Photographed by: Adam Bannister & Shan Varty Lion takes down wild dog
Posted on 19 June, 2014 Written by Roan Ravenhill I was viewing some lions, sleeping in the the reeds beside the Sand River at Mala Mala when a pack of Cape hunting dogs showed up. They ran onto the sand bank where the lions were but continued past the lions, which they did not see, but the lions noticed them. The Cape hunting dogs went down the sand bank towards the river, looking to cross. Suddenly the female lion got up and started stalking them.  *This image is copyright of its original author The dogs still had no idea of the lion up on the bank as she started running towards them. *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author She caught the alpha male, mauling him and playing around with him in the water for about 20 minutes before eventually killing him.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author - See more at: http://africageographic.com/blog/lion-ta...DViKL.dpuf
The beautiful African wild dog
Posted on 8 September, 2014 by Mike Visagie I have been lucky over the last year to see three different wild dog packs in Southern Africa, and the words that spring to mind when I think of these encounters are: energy, intelligence, community, cooperation, joy and lastly; smell. Boy do they smell.  *This image is copyright of its original author Recently in Madikwe, I came across a pack lounging in the shade away from the hot mid day sun. Even in the heat they huddled together in a little group sometimes making it difficult to see where one dog started and finished. We were only a few meters away in an open vehicle and the smell at times was overwhelming. I think it is generally unknown why they do smell, but it is presumedly so they can easily be detected from a distance by other pack members. Wild dogs also have scent glands located in and around their anus, on their genitals, and on their face. These glands are used to communicate sexual readiness, gender, age, health, and status of the animal. It is said that another wild dog can smell the scent left by the anal glands when another defecates and determine each of these things. Much like their domesticated cousins. *This image is copyright of its original author The wild dogs live in packs of up to about 20 individuals and are usually dominated by a monogamous breeding pair. The female has a litter of 2 to 20 pups, which are cared for by the entire pack. These dogs are very social, and packs have been known to share food and to assist weak or ill members. They communicate by touch, actions, and vocalisations and this is easily seem when observing a pack of wild dogs.Once I saw a pack of dogs chasing a hyena, who then scurried into a ticket where the dogs were unable to approach from behind. Individuals and pairs tried to flush the hyena but she aggressively showed them off, growling and baring her teeth. After about 15 minutes one of the dogs (I presumed the dominant male or female) ran around to almost every dog making small noises. The pack’s energy levels rose visibly and then suddenly this ‘alpha’ dog shot off with the entire pack following and yelping. The hyena sheepishly came out the thicket, looked left and right and then ran off in the opposite direction with what appeared to be frustration opposed to fear. Her demeanour was slightly humorous and it did bring a smile to my face. I imagined her thinking “Oh those silly dogs…”  *This image is copyright of its original author On another occasion, in the Kruger Park, I was driving along the road just approaching the Biyamiti bridge and I saw a pack of dogs running very quickly down the embankment to the river below. I was a little way from the bridge and by the time we got there and looked down to the river bed the pack had taken down a pregnant impala and had already removed the unborn calf from her stomach. *This image is copyright of its original author What was interesting about this was that the pack had some young pups and the unborn calf was given to these pups to eat and play with. They could be seen in a tug of war with the carcass and at times one pup would grab the impala and run off proudly with its prize only to be rapidly caught up with, and the tug of war would resume. *This image is copyright of its original author The adults rapidly fed off the female impala and they seemed to take turns eating while others either lay off to one side or played. From a wild dog’s perspective it was a happy time. *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author One dog removed the stomach from the impala and broke it open and then proceeded to roll in the contents no doubt adding to the pungent smell of the dog. It reminded me of my own dog who will roll in any wild animal scat that she comes across and will come away smelling almost as bad as these wild dogs do.  *This image is copyright of its original author As I watched, it was amazing to see how quickly they managed to devour parts of the animal and the impala was rapidly scattered on the river bed as dogs dragged their own piece of their prize away. There was no aggression while the dogs fed and any excitement that developed was in play rather than anger. *This image is copyright of its original author Two days later we drove past the same spot and all that one could see of the impala was the very clean bones. She had not only provided a meal for the wild dogs but a number of other birds and animals too. *This image is copyright of its original author I imagine some might find the images and description above slightly disturbing however this is nature at its best and observing this death and feast was a wonderful example of the cycle of nature that is played out in so many different ways in the African bush. There is a Native American quote from Chief Seattle – “There is no death. Only a change of worlds” and this is how it felt that day.- See more at: http://africageographic.com/blog/the-bea...0q4wO.dpuf Shimuwini Camp is one of my favourite places to stay in Kruger. It’s one of the so-called bush camps (like Biyamiti, Talamati, Sirheni and Bateleur), and is only accessible to people who are booked to stay there. Also, the roads into camp are off-limits to general visitors, so you have a good chance of being alone at wildlife sightings.
I was very lucky here. Once again, most of my luck came early in the morning or late afternoon. After seven weeks of getting up every morning at 5, to make sure I catch the early light, I was tired! But if you don’t get up early, you’re going to miss the action! And on several mornings at Shimuwini, I was rewarded. First, a big male leopard, and then a pack of seven wild dogs on the hunt. Enjoy the photos!  *This image is copyright of its original author African wild dogs near Shimuwini Camp. I found a pack of seven dogs (three adults and two sub-adults) hunting early one morning along the side of the S41 River road near the camp.  *This image is copyright of its original author They were intrigued by some buffalo dung that was very fresh. They ate some of it, then rolled in it. I presume to mask their smell while hunting, but also to supplement the bacteria in their stomachs? I need to clarify this with a wild dog expert.  *This image is copyright of its original author The second rarest carnivore in Africa, after the Ethiopian Wolf. About 5 000 individuals occur in the wild in Africa, only about 550 in South Africa, and most of these occur in Kruger. To see them in their natural wild environment is a privilege, every time.  *This image is copyright of its original author Mmmm, lovely! A wild dog rolls in some buffalo dung.  *This image is copyright of its original author Some wild dogs - if they've never seen vehicles or people before - are very inquisitive of cars. These sub-adults kept walking closer to me, and when I reversed, they kept on walking towards me. I guess their intrigue stems from their lack of persecution by humans, as so often happens outside protected areas. Their naive trust of humans makes such a nice change from most wild animals which are scared of humans, because we have hunted them for so long. (Although, this is one theory why Africa's large mammals have survived for so long in the modern world - because wild animals evolved alongside hunting humans, and are intrinsically wary of us. On other continents, when humans first arrived from Africa, animals had no idea that we were hunting, marauding predators, and so consequently the poor creatures were easily wiped out by homo sapiens.)  *This image is copyright of its original author They are beautiful creatures, and finally the world is starting to realise that the old negative prejudices against wild dogs are totally unwarranted. 
From Londolozi Game Reserve, 5 Days Back on The Road by James Tyrrell:
"I included this photo more for the story. Richard Siwela, head tracker, age 68, still has the eyes of an eagle. We set out in the morning to look for the wild dogs, but there was no sign of them for a good hour and a half. We eventually found tracks right down in our south east as it began to get warm, and as the tracks headed into what is literally the most densely vegetated area on the property, with hard soil and difficult tracking conditions, I became pretty convinced we weren’t going to find them. Rich had faith though, and insisted he was still on the tracks, and then suddenly, two kilometres later, there they were! It was a truly brilliant tracking effort! Although fast asleep in the leaf litter, they got going after half an hour or so and came to a nearby pan to drink before settling down in the Tugwaan riverbed to sleep."  *This image is copyright of its original author
  *This image is copyright of its original author After being chased down to a river bank in Sabie Sand game reserve in South Africa, the lone hyena was trapped by high ground on back, water in front, and eight wild dogs bearing in from all other angles.  *This image is copyright of its original author Surrounded by the snarling canines, the hyena who was fighting for his life seemed to have little chance to escape unscathed.  *This image is copyright of its original author This Hyena Was Cornered By A Pack Of Wild Dogs, But What It Does Next Is Genius Eight wild dogs were terrorising a lone hyena. While normally encounters like this are very fleeting; this one lasted for ages. And then the defiant hyena launched a valiant fight back.  *This image is copyright of its original author This Hyena Was Cornered By A Pack Of Wild Dogs, But What It Does Next Is Genius The hyena snarled in the face of his opponents, and lashed out at the pack of dogs, thus breaking the dogs' rank, and then events took an unexpected twist.  *This image is copyright of its original author The hyena, taking the chance of the dogs' breaking rank with the gaping jaws of the hippo, made a break for the nearby river and sat it out in the water.  *This image is copyright of its original author This Hyena Was Cornered By A Pack Of Wild Dogs, But What It Does Next Is Genius Remarkably, the wild dogs were too frightened of the water to follow the hyena in, so they kept their distance and eventually forfeited the fight, sloping off to find something else to hunt for dinner. Marc Mol said: "The cackling and laughing sounds of the hyena, coupled with the snarls of the dog squadron were amazing to watch."  *This image is copyright of its original author http://flipopular.com/this-hyena-was-cor...-genius/7/ 
Credits to Ronesh Parbhoo
A pack of Wild Dogs take a breather and rest after failing to hunt a herd of impalas.  *This image is copyright of its original author
"Only above ground for a week or so, these pups were quick to start their games of fitness, technique and hierarchy."
"Celebrating Life Above Ground" by James Kydd.  *This image is copyright of its original author
The youngsters of the African painted dog pack play with the head of a bushbuck that was killed earlier. Credits to Rob the Ranger.
A beautiful endangered wild dog uses a nearby hill to scan the area around her for any possible prey.
Credit To Makanyi Lodge  *This image is copyright of its original author
Epic battle in the Kalahari. Credits to Lucien Beaumont Photography.
 *This image is copyright of its original author
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