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Canids (Canidae) & Hyaenids (Hyaenidae)
Dholes (Cuon alpinus)
Dholes (Cuon alpinus)
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Dholes (Cuon alpinus)
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 Dholes playing, Pench Tiger Reserve.
 *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author The Wild Dhole Chase
Siddharth Rao tracks the elusive and endangered Asiatic wild dog or dhole through dense jungles around India First glimpse
The cramp in my leg started to bother me and I moved a little to make it better. I had been quietly squirming in this fashion for over an hour, crouched on a too-thin tree perch. As I contemplated my next move, the first pup stumbled out of the den. Then another followed and another, till there were six playful puppies and three adult wild dogs 150ft away from my hiding place in the tree. I forgot about the cramp in my leg and observed the unfolding action. The adult dogs greeted each other in typical wild-dog-style: whining, licking each other and rolling on the ground. The pups chased one another and one even chewed on its brother’s ear. I was in the Mudumalai National Park in Tamil Nadu, helping to make a film on the Asiatic wild dog, also called the dhole. I spent weeks observing what they did in their natural environment and here is what I learnt.
Getting to know dholesA distinct species of wildlife, dholes are part of the canidae family. They cannot be domesticated and live in packs or groups as social animals (the largest dhole pack ever recorded had over 40 members). They’re found in India, Bhutan and in some Southeast Asian countries, right up till Russia, and share their habitat with large carnivores like leopards, tigers, hyenas and wolves. And just like these carnivores, dholes consume a variety of prey, from small rodents to large animals like sambhar deer.
Team players and wily strategists *This image is copyright of its original author Being social animals, dholes hunt together and this makes them very efficient. They are successful in catching prey up to 80% of the time that they go on a hunt, while tigers have a success rate of only 5%. Even though they’re small in build, the dholes’ overcome this with teamwork. I once watched three wild dogs cross paths with a large adult leopard in the forest; but the dholes teamed up and forced the leopard up a tree! But on another occasion, I saw that a small group of dholes did not confront a tiger, and chose to move away. It would probably take 12 to 15 wild dogs to convince a tiger to back down.
The big dhole hunt Dholes hunt twice a day – early every morning and just before sunset. If they manage to make a morning kill and the pack is well-fed, they will not hunt till the next day. Like all wildlife, dholes only eat as much as they need to. They hunt by working as a team, attacking their prey from different angles, and chasing them over long distances. Since they are relatively small compared to some of their prey (like the chital or sambhar deer), dholes are often unable to kill their prey when they catch it. Instead, the prey dies from shock and blood loss after being attacked.
 *This image is copyright of its original author Whistle, lick, scream Communication is a big part of dhole behaviour. They express themselves in many ways, one of which is physical contact. A pack of travelling wild dogs will often stop to nuzzle, lick and rub against one another. While a lot of this behaviour is playful, there are other messages being communicated. For instance, the dogs lower in the social hierarchy try to get the attention of the alpha male and alpha female (the leaders of the pack) by cosying up to them physically. Interestingly, dholes do not bark, but whistle. Mothers whistle to call their young, and adults whistle when they hunt. They are also known to scream, coo and growl.
Endangered and unpopular Sadly, the dhole has been killed indiscriminately by humans over the years (with bounties placed on each dead animal) for not being a “sporting hunter” and for eating “the maharaja’s deer”. Today, it’s an endangered species. Like most wildlife, habitat loss is the major cause for its decline. But if you ever happen to visit a forest that is home to dholes (like Bandipur, Kanha, Corbett and Nagarhole) and encounter a pack, listen carefully for their high-pitched whistles – I guarantee it’s the experience of a lifetime! Wild Dogs (Dhole) on the hunt @ Tadoba...Vicious Killers!!!
“Nature taking its course - hunter and prey, the endless circle of life and death.” – Stephenie Meyer How often does one get lucky watching a hunt in the wild! Well I have been one of the lucky ones! It was a cold December evening at Tadoba. I was accompanied by Atul Sabnis, a dear friend & my classmate whom I managed to trace after more than 25 years. Atul flew into Hyderabad and we decided to head to Tadoba for a weekend. We decided that was the best place to plan a getaway, and catch up on news, event etc over the last 25 years of our lives. We didn’t get to sight any Big Cats on the trip, but were very lucky to see a pair of Wild Dogs (Dhole) hunting down a baby Sambhar, and that too right on the road. It was unusual just to see the dogs do that as a pair and not in a pack. I guess either they were very hungry or didn’t want to share the spoils with the rest of their pack. What we witnessed for close to an hour was how one dog managed to engage the mother Sambhar, while I other one kept having a go at the young one. With just the two of them in the hunt, it needed a lot of guile and speed to bring down the young one. The mother Sambhar kept herself between the predator and the prey. The Dhole unlike Bigs Cats don’t choke their prey. But deliver a very sharp bite and take a chunk of flesh away. And this was how despite just being a pair, they managed to bring down their quarry. The pictures will showcase the Face-Off that happened, and the eventual result.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author It was a very gruesome encounter, and definitely not for the faint-hearted. The Dhole continued their attacks, persistently and clinically, until they bit a large chunk of the young one's backside, which rendered the crucial blow. The young one couldn’t move and just lay down, tired, bleeding and in lots of pain. It kept howling, as the pain must have been intense. All the tourists kept very quiet, mesmerised by what was going on. The mother knew this was going to end in a kill, but made relentless effort keeping the dogs at bay. It kept thumping its leg on the ground, which was an attempt to fight the dogs.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author As all this kept happening, another gypsy, the open safari jeep recklessly parked up right next to where the young one was lying, and this made the mother panic and run away. The dogs also ran into the undergrowth, cautiously eyeing their meal. And in this melee, the young one was bleeding profusely and crying out loudly in severe pain. The tourists guide and the driver got a mouthful of abuses from everyone there, as this was a very callous act. After the vehicle moved away, the dogs came out, dragged the young Sambhar into the undergrowth and started feasting on it alive. That's how wild dogs hunt! As much as it was probably gory for many, we were witnessing the show nature was putting up! That's the law of the wild! That was an experience many yearn for, but you have to be very lucky to see it happen!!! The picture below captures the dogs, in the morning, pulling off a stunt which is very very rare...walking on two legs...another lucky capture.  *This image is copyright of its original author Wild India | Sambar attacking wild dogs
I have been visiting many national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and other protected areas of Wild India and have documented many rare natural history moments involving predators. However, the scene that unfolded before my eyes of prey attacking its predators is one of the finest moments that Wild India can dish out for its humble students. Except for a brief sighting of elephants who immediately ran away when our jeep started climbing the hill, it was an uneventful afternoon in Bandipur Tiger Reserve with no sighting of the other mega fauna like tiger, leopards and gaur. There were sightings – of a few cheetals browsing, a hoopoe using its long beak to dig up juicy morsels from the ground, and that of a crested serpent eagle perched on a branch virtually motionless, except for slight head turns to scan its surroundings - which will dishearten the normal tourist. Except for a few questions that I answered of a school kid, whom I had allowed to come in my jeep due to the request of the hotel manager, I was silent trying to hear the sounds of the jungle. We planned to check kavare katte a large water body and then exit the forest. From a distance we could see a few sambar's in the water. When we moved in closer, the enormity of the situation quickly unfolded. It was one of the finest natural history moments that one can dream of experiencing in Wild India. A pack of dholes (Cuon alpinus) or wild dogs* as they are often referred to by people, were on the hunt and to escape them the Sambars (Cervus unicolor) had entered the water. I could sight one fawn in the group.  *This image is copyright of its original author Wild India | Dholes or Wild dogs attacking sambar in water. These two sambar are in the frontline stamping their feet in water. The Sambar being tall were standing in more than knee deep water. The wild dogs or doles (Cuon alpinus) were around 12-15 in number and were part of the 28 pack group. Wisely the wild dogs were not entering the water, as in doing so they need to swim where as the sambar just need to stand and can conserve their energy. The wild dogs (Cuon alpinus) were running from one end to the other to seemingly disorient and divide the herd of sambars. This group of sambars were an all hind group with one fawn. There were two Sambar's standing side by side with about a feet and half distance between them in shallow waters and others of the group were a few meters behind in deeper water. These two Sambars were stamping their feet in water in unison and the water was splashing about three feet above their heads. They appeared like frontline soldiers in this battle.  *This image is copyright of its original author Suddenly the Sambar on the left – first two a couple of steps towards the wild dogs stamping its feet in the process to intimidate the dholes (Cuon alpinus). The Sambar's tail was cocked up, as one expects to see it when the sambar is alarmed or when two stags duel with each other. The ruff of hair around its neck were standing straight up as if carefully combed to remain erect like the feathers on the roman emperor's helmet. Its body partially wet due to the water splashing on it was still up, perhaps as a sign of danger. Its ears were straight and wide and angled ahead. Its neck was lowered a bit and stretched ahead with its ears in line with its body.The Sambar then increased its speed and moved into a trot and reached near a wild dog (Cuon alpinus) and started watching it. The wild dog (Cuon alpinus) like an opportunist, moved a couple of steps ahead as if it will launch itself on the sambar's head and catch hold of either ear, eye or nose. The Sambar was now standing very straight and showed its full height and its neck was angled lower and ahead towards the wild dog. The wild dog sensed that the Sambar will charge and immediately jumped to its left and ran away. The sambar stopped in its tracks and then turned its head towards its left as by this time two more wild dogs had appeared in the scene hoping to attack the Sambar. The Sambar then lunged forward at the dhole on its left. The head of the Sambar was angled down and its hind legs were in the air as if it wanted to crush the dhole by pinning it to the ground. The dhole started running for dear life where as the other wild dog (Cuon alpinus) was watching the scene carefully, suggesting they are expert players in this game.
 *This image is copyright of its original author Wild India | Attacking the attackers The wild dogs were careful in avoiding the assault as a frontal head butt can cause serious fracture as well as a kick by the hind legs can rip the wild dog apart. The Sambar on its part only charged for a short distance and then moved back into the water. This went on for sometime. Interestingly this Sambar had a sore patch on its neck.  *This image is copyright of its original author A Sambar (Cervus unicolor) counter-attacking dholes (Cuon alpinus) in Bandipur Tiger Reserve All this while, the mother Sambar was standing infront of the fawn to shield it. The mother was in knee deep water and the fawn's complete legs were within the water. At this moment the mother and fawn had got separated a bit from the group while the Sambar which was charging at the wild dogs was on their left.  *This image is copyright of its original author Sambar (Cervus unicolor) mother and fawn vs wild dog (Cuon alpinus) in Bandipur Tiger Reserve, India During this moment sensing an opportunity a wild dog (Cuon alpinus) moved in towards the mother and fawn. Immediately, the mother started striking the water with its foreleg in the characteristic fashion when they are alarmed. The sambar ws stamping its foot so hard, perhaps due to its nervousness that the water splashing high up. The wild dog stopped in its tracks and looked at its left towards the other dholes. The mother Sambar which had taken two steps ahead, took a break from foot stamping and turned its head to its right towards its fawn, to lick and reassure the baby. It was a very poignant moment.  *This image is copyright of its original author Sambar mother reassuring the fawn when the attacking dhole is momentarily distracted One of the two sentinel Sambars now appeared on the scene and started engaging the wild dogs who were six strong at that spot and could easily attack the Sambar from the flanks. The mother was now standing side wise to completely hide the fawn from the wild dogs.  *This image is copyright of its original author Sambar mother hiding its fawn while another Sambar counter-attacking the dholes in Bandipur Tiger Reserve Suddenly the mother as well as the other Sambar together launched an attack at the wild dogs and then turned back and came into the water again. To me they looked like two big horses being chased back. While running into the water they moved a couple of steps beyond the fawn completely exposing it. Fortunately, before the wild dogs could attack, the fawn jumped and ran to meet its mother.  *This image is copyright of its original author Sambars counter-attacking the dholes as the fawn looks on After this one attack the mother didn't participate in attacks any more. The number of wild dogs at that spot were now eight and the other Sambar was now launching vicious attacks on the wild dogs. It even tried to strike at the wild dogs with its front right foreleg. I had never seen the use of foreleg before by a herbivore in defending or attacking. However, A. A. Dunbar Barander has seen this behavior before with his tame dogs. He writes "A herd of five hinds once rounded on a pack of large useful dogs of mine, and knocking the dogs over right and left drove them right up to my feet, taking all further desire to molest sambar hinds out of their composition for their time being."  *This image is copyright of its original author Sambar counter-attacking the dholes using its foreleg in Bandipur Tiger Reserve Two more Sambars of the herd came from the other part of the lake to save them as the wild dog pack were now convering on this point and their number had increased to ten. The sun had already set and it was increasingly becoming dark and my camera shutter speed was becoming extremely low despite using high ISOs and a 400mm f2.8 lens. The wild dogs appeared dispirited and some of them started lying down to take rest. Since the Indian wild dogs or dholes don't normally hunt in the night, they abandoned the hunt. The Sambar's also understood that the wild dogs have abandoned the attack and then started leaving the water from the other side. However, the mother and fawn remained in the shallow waters. It was time for us to leave the forest. In the night, I was thinking whether the wild dogs will break their habit of not hunting in the dark and come back and attack the fawn? Next day morning, I returned to the same area and saw the wild dogs were frolicking with each other at a place which was hardly a few minutes from the waterbody. And when I reached the waterbody, I found the mother and fawn still standing in water. The sun was shining on them and then infront of me they slowly moved out of the water and into the forest. This raised many questions in my mind. Did the Sambar's communicate with each other before leaving? Did the other sambar's urge the mother to leave with them but it was so frightened and benumbed by the attack that it didn't move out of water? Unlike elephants who use their trunks to touch each other during moments of stress, the other sambar's didn't do any such thing. Perhaps their verbal communication was not audible to my ears which has become accustomed to high decibles in the urban jungles? Perhaps the sambar's felt that since the danger was over it was right for them to move out of water and retire for the night. Dunbar Brander in his book "Wild Animals in Central India" relates a scene where a Sambar was attacked in the pool by tame dogs and its faculties were benumbed. Dunbar Brander writes "In a small peafowl beat at Kolkas in the Melghat, two fox terriers ran a full-grown doe sambar into a deep pool, swam out, and mounting its back, which was flush with the water, crawled along and attacked its head. The deer was defenceless. In order to save it, two Korkus and myself waded out and dispersed the dogs. The sambar allowed us to handle it, and with infinite care we coaxed it ashore, where it continued to stand between us, and one of the Korkus actually started to rub it down. It was in no way hurt. It is only fair to add that it had a fawn on the hillside close by. I do not ascribe its behavior however to maternal solicitude, but to the fact that its faculties were benumbed by the terror inspired by the dogs, and that it preferred our, or any company, to theirs. We had considerable difficulty in getting it to move away to the forest. It is also necessary to state however that sambar do not always behave in this way" Clearly, the mother sambar was terribly frightened and didn't want to move out of water, even though other members of the herd moved away from the water. In the jungle for every species self preservation comes first. When there is danger, the herd comes to help and once the spectre of death is removed, they immediately pick up their lives and go back to their routines. Even if that meant leaving a shell shocked mother with its child in the water. Saturday, May 12, 2012
Indian Dhole I've kept the best things for last. The highlight of the entire trip to Periyar Tiger Reserve is without doubt the sighting of several Indian Wild Dogs, also called Dholes. These canines were feasting on a fresh wild sambar on the bank of the lake.  *This image is copyright of its original author I wasn't expecting this during the ride. We didn't spot this group of Dholes on the way into the lake (it's a to and fro course), but only on the way back. That meant one thing- these Dholes had attacked and killed the sambar deer as we were travelling deeper into the lake.  *This image is copyright of its original author As our boat drew closer to the scene, most of the dogs fled further up the bank. They are known to be fearful of humans.  *This image is copyright of its original author There was, however, this particular daring individual who stood his spot, not letting go of his precious meal.  *This image is copyright of its original author He looks up at us, and then continues feasting. As you can see, the water around the sambar had become bloody red.  *This image is copyright of its original author The deer is about thrice the size of the dhole, but since these dogs hunt in packs, they are bold enough to attack and overpower large and dangerous animals such as wild boars, water buffaloes and even tigers.  *This image is copyright of its original author Dholes are classed as endangered by the IUCN, due to ongoing habitat loss, depletion of its prey base, competition from other predators and possibly diseases from domestic dogs. I could consider myself lucky to have spotted a pack in action.  *This image is copyright of its original author no correlation between pack size and size of prey was found in an area where chital and sambar were main prey.
 *This image is copyright of its original author 
Photo and information credits: Souvik Kundu
"Portrait of Indian Wild Dog or Dhole. Pench National Park, April 2016"  *This image is copyright of its original author
Cannot help but to notice how white and clean-looking this dhole's teeth are. Remarkable. ( post #9 pictured above ).
Nagzira 3 - Whole lotta Dhole
There are places that somehow exert a magnetic charm on you and Nagzira is one of them for me. Time and again, this beautiful little jewel in Vidarbha's green crown beckons me to visit and invariably showers an unbelievable bounty of sightings on me. And while A-Mark and her family invariably bless us with their presence, it is that whistling hunter of the Indian jungle that really draws me there every time. Nagzira must rate amongst the finest places on the planet to see the Indian wild dog or dhole. This otherwise elusive predator is seen quite frequently here and several times in packs of a dozen or more. There are reported sightings of a legendary pack of upto 40 individuals, but I will reserve comment on that till I have had a chance to feast my own eyes on them. And no, it is not because I am jealous of those who have seen this pack!
This time I set out for Nagzira with school friends Krishnan, Rajesh and Nirav, celebrating our 25th year out of school with a boys' trip. And it turned out to be a trip to savor for each one of us and in more ways than one - Nirav saw his first tiger, Krishnan and Rajesh their first quality dhole sighting and me with another opportunity to step into this wonderful forest. And to keep my proud record going, of seeing a predator on every safari to date.
Indian Pitta Oriental Honey Buzzard Well, that record went in a hurry as our first trip yielded a lot but no predators. Instead, I got my first decent pictures of the Indian pitta, a bird which is so numerous in this season yet so difficult to photograph. With a hawk cuckoo, crested serpent eagle and oriental honey buzzard all giving us a patient sighting, we headed out with some good pictures. And at the last waterhole a peacock's alarm calls put us on high alert. He called repeatedly and sometimes was echoed by a jungle fowl. And close to dusk, it was very probably a leopard. So we waited till we were almost out of time and then reluctantly headed out. So the spotted wonder stayed hidden from our sight but presented himself to the next vehicle, who got a brief glimpse of him at the waterhole. Close, but no dice! The gods more than made up the next morning as first up, right next to the central check point, we saw a pack of dhole. They seemed to be hungry, sizing up a herd of spotted deer and when some of them split up, we knew that a hunt could be on. Then, to our surprise, this group headed to an old spotted deer kill and proceeded to tear to bits whatever little was left. There was plenty of squealing, yapping and even the odd high pitched yowl. And they seemed not in a mood to hunt, disappearing into the shade of thick bush, we left them to try our luck with A Mark and Jay.
Collared Scops Owl Chicks And as we headed down Chorkhamara road, we first saw a couple of collared scops owl chicks. Heading onwards, a couple of vehicles lined up near the entry to Tiger Trail told us what we wanted to know - there was a tiger somewhere near. And sure enough, it was A Mark sleeping in the bush. We waited for a while at the waterhole nearby while other vehicles gave up and left. And just as we opened our breakfast packets she walked out and settled down in the water for a drink and a wallow. The aloo parathas and boiled eggs were hastily shoved back into the packet as the queen of Nagzira posed distractedly for the attendant papperazzi. Maybe she wanted a bite but was too embarrassed to ask? Anyways, seeing that she wasn't going to get any, she drank her fill and then crossed over to rest in the bush. There was a suspicion that she could be pregnant again, after unfortunately losing her last litter a few months ago. We don't know for sure, but I'm hoping this amazing tigress has a new bunch of (female) kids to welcome us in the next season.
A Mark lost in thought
So we had tiger and dhole on one safari and we were thrilled. But there was more. As we headed back from centre point, something told me I had to visit the waterhole at the nearby meadow - this was where I had that stupendous dhole sighting last year. And sure enough, there was another pack at the waterhole - just finished drinking and headed into the shade. One of them sat in the water and posed for us, while the lead lookout sat under a tree and glared at us as if we were checking out his mate. We could also smell a kill so they'd probably all had polished off a good meal of spotted deer. Two different dhole packs + A Mark made it a super special safari. That afternoon, my (now slightly dented) record stayed intact, but only just. We saw A Mark lying in the bush but she didn't emerge. We headed onwards towards Chorkhamara hoping that Jay (or Dendu) might be on the prowl. No signs of either, but we did glimpse a sleeping pack of dhole at Wakda Beda. Once again, dhole and tiger on the same safari, I don't think any other park can claim to provide such abundant sightings of both these predators. And as we headed out, a light shower cooled off things and made the day seem that much more productive!
On our last safari, we headed to New Nagzira, via the Umarzari gate. The resident tigress Alpha had a litter of 6 month old cubs and we were keen to see them. As we drove around the area, we saw monkeys frantically calling near a waterhole at the foot of a hill. We also heard a tigress' 'Aumm', as she called to her cubs. We waited, and even opened our breakfast packets as bait, but this family didn't bite. Maybe they didn't care for poha and sandwiches! As the calls died down, we drove around to the other side of the hill and there were two vehicles next to a nallah, searching for something. They'd seen two of the cubs at the side of the road and they'd since disappeared into the shade of the nallah. So while we were hoping that the family were on the other side of the hill what actually happened was that the tigress was on top of the hill and she called to her cubs to stay put in the nallah this side. And as there was no sign of activity all the jeeps drove off.
Alpha's 6 month old cub
And we waited. Knowing that the cubs were nearby and that the mother could make an appearance. And suddenly, Rajesh said 'tiger'! He'd spotted one of the cubs on a shady ledge in the nallah. And as the cub stretched, snoozed and stared at us in turn, we silently celebrated yet another sighting in this wonderful haven called Nagzira. The other cubs and tigress didn't make an appearance, so we drove off, thanking this little fella for giving us an exclusive audience. Back at the resort, there was some superb birding with sightings of flycatchers, pitta and orange headed thrushes. Orange headed thrush Tickell's Blue Flycatcher Once again, Nagzira played the perfect host, with superb sightings of two of my favorite species and topped by some lovely birding. And this time, it exceeded its brief and threw up a couple of very pleasant surprises for Rajesh and me. I ran into old friends Shrikant and Uma with their kids, and Rajesh into his college mate. Both after nearly 2 decades! Now I'm wondering what I should ask of this incredible park on my next visit. Maybe A Mark with 4 cubs. Jay, Veeru and Dendu. Alpha with her 4 cubs. A leopard or two perhaps? And topped off by that 40 strong dhole group for good measure? Outlandish it may sound, but never bet against it happening in this most incredible of wild havens called Nagzira!  *This image is copyright of its original author Dhole with a spotted deer kill
After many many trips, i finally get to see an active kill! This spotted deer kill is providing a rolling buffet for a pack of 8 Dhole, each taking it turns to eat and then stand guard! Fantastic! More display of their pristine teeth
 *This image is copyright of its original author 
dhole trying to kill sambar deer
Very low light image Nagzira May 15  *This image is copyright of its original author Manish Kamble What happned nxt? Like · Reply · 1 · 44 mins  *This image is copyright of its original author Dushyant Rebhe Dhole win the game Like · Reply · 1 · 37 mins
Varun Thakkar
Dhole From Pench (maha). It was drizzling when we saw this pack of dholes, more than 25 in this pack. Saw such a huge pack after a long long time. Aug 16.  *This image is copyright of its original author
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