African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus)

African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus)

The African Wild Dog, also referred to as the African Hunting Dog or African Painted Dog, is a wild canid confined to portions of east and south Africa as well as Tanzania and Mozambique where they roam the deserts, savanna, and plains. They are medium sized dogs with weights ranging from 18-34 kg (~40-75 lbs) and a total body length of about 0.85-1,41 m (~3-5 ft). African Wild Dogs have short uniquely colored coats characterized by yellow, black, grey, and white blotches. Their ears are also exceptionally large and rounded. It is suspected that these large ears help with cooling in warm climates, and aid in recognizing far off vocal signals by pack mates.

As highly social animals, African Wild Dogs typically form packs with around 10-30 individuals. Like wolves (Canis lupus) and other pack animals, African Wild Dogs maintain a strict, ranked social system within the pack (Omega -> Alpha). These canids are considered to be both carnivorous and opportunistic predators. They prefer larger animals such as warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus) and antelope (Antilopinae sp.). Though, like many opportunistic predators, African Wild Dogs will also supplement their diets with rodents, insects, and birds. Though African Wild Dogs do not have many natural predators, animals such as Lions (Panthera leo) and Hyenas (Hyaenidae) have been known to prey upon Lycaon pictus.

Only the alpha pair breed in an African Wild Dog pack. Females can often go into heat at any during the year, and pups are born year round. Litter sizes are usually consist of about 12 pups. After about 12- 14 months, pups typically become independent, and are able to separate from the care of their parents at this time.

The true threats African Wild Dogs face today are habitat loss, over-hunting by humans and diseases such as rabies and distemper. They are currently listed as an endangered species, with only ~3,000-5,500 remaining in the wild.

Helpful Resources: 

http://www.arkive.org/african-wild-dog/lycaon-pictus/

http://a-z-animals.com/animals/african-wild-dog/

http://www.wildafrica.cz/en/animal/african-wild-dog/