TPO – African wild dogs are mammals in the Canidae family, Carnivora order. They have the strongest bite among mammals in the Carnivora order.
The scientific name of African wild dogs is Lycaon pictus, the English name is “Painted wolves” but people often know them by the name wild dogs.
African wild dogs are known as masters of the art of coordinated hunting on the savannah with a success rate of up to 3/4 in each hunt, each individual has a good sense of discipline and solidarity. They are also one of the animals with the strongest bite among mammals in the Carnivora order.
There were once an estimated 500,000 African wild dogs in 39 countries and packs of 100 or more were not uncommon, but today there are only about 3,000-5,500 in fewer than 25 countries, or perhaps as few as 14.
The 2016 population was estimated at 39 subpopulations containing 6,600 adults, only 1,400 of which are breeding adults. The decline of these populations is ongoing, due to habitat fragmentation, human persecution and disease
Uniquely social and organizational
They have a very fashionable coat with black, brown, yellow and white spots; each dog has a different spot, no two are alike, and a pair of large round ears. The habitat of the African wild dog is concentrated in eastern and southern Africa.
African wild dogs have a highly organized and disciplined pack lifestyle. This is one of the highlights that helps them survive in harsh environments with many larger and more dangerous predators.
They are a species with a leader, all other members must obey. When hunting prey, the meat is divided from top to bottom, the other dogs wait patiently, standing guard until it is their turn to eat.
They almost never fight each other for food due to this ranking system. When a dog is sick, injured or old, or even loses the ability to hunt, the remaining members of the pack will take care of and feed them. When the leader is injured, it is not forced to abdicate, if it is intelligent enough, it will still be respected and cared for by the whole pack.
A more special feature of this animal is its characteristic of yielding to its subordinates. When hunting prey, the adults will let the young devour the food first. Not only the parents, but also the older siblings participate in caring for and protecting the young ones in the pack.
This species also has a very strange habit, which is to swallow food and then vomit it out to eat again. They also sometimes roll over the vomit first, then stand up and devour the messy pile of meat on the ground. The job is usually used to bring food back to the young, but sometimes this is extended to the older ones, to the point that it is the foundation of the social life of African wild dogs.
 |
Extremely accurate hunting skills
While the success rate of lions is only about 27-30%, this rate of African wild dogs is up to 80%, a number that must be said to be incredibly high, surpassing that of lions and leopards. They often hunt in large packs of about 20 animals, and together can take down prey many times larger than themselves, such as zebras and wildebeests.
Their jaws can create a powerful bite of up to 240,000 kg/m2, the lower jaw of wild dogs is much larger than that of domestic dogs, and their molars have the function of peeling meat off bones. They even steal prey from species at the top of the food chain such as lions, hyenas or crocodiles.
Watching African wild dogs hunt, you will know why they are praised as the “top hunters” of Africa.
Most predators rely on camouflage to silently approach and take down their prey, but African wild dogs rarely have to use this tactic, they are born to conquer their prey by chasing.
With good eyesight and incredible endurance, wild dogs can chase their prey continuously for 8 km and can reach a maximum speed of 66 km/h. Usually, they will chase their prey until the prey is exhausted and collapses, unable to fight back and kill the prey.
To hunt a large prey, the members of the pack need to coordinate smoothly.
Before chasing the prey, they spread out to surround and choose the target. One approaches the prey, another moves to block the flank, and the others line up in between. Their purpose is to separate the intended target from the pack, surround the flank and close in on the prey so that it does not escape. This is an extremely effective and scientific way of hunting for species that live in packs.
If the prey is small, they simply crush it to the ground and tear it apart with their powerful jaws, which are among the most powerful in the natural world. In addition, African wild dogs are very intelligent in knowing how to communicate with each other when hunting, the dogs constantly let other members know both their location and that of the prey.
