Dhole

Taxonomy

• Animal Kingdom

• Cuon Alpinus

• Canidae

• Carnivore

• Cuon

• Dog species

Evolution

• Subspecies include but not limited to jacklas and wolf

• Existed for 12000-18000 years

• African Wild dog closest living species

• Ancestors: Wild dog, red dog, and golden jackal

Description

• Size of a german sheperd, auburn coat, bushy tails

• 30-40 inches long, 11-19 inches tall

• 30-46lbs

• 10-16 Years

Social Structure

• Live in packs with 5-12/per pack with having one female and one male dominant

• Just like dogs when they get happy they wag their tails

Reproduction

• Mating happens between November-December and consisents of 2 weeks of courting then 2 weeks of breeding

• Theres no specific mating ritual but usually the male mates with more than one female

• They Usually have 12 pups

Development

• Pups are born deaf and blind and slowly deveolp like a dog over a course of a year

• 3 years old is sexual maturity 

• Almost no differences between male and female

• Females tend to leave the pack around 3 years old and find a new one

Causes of Death

• Dholes do not have any natural predators but conflict can come up with their shared environment around Tigers and Leopards 

• They do not have any sexual competition

• They do carry rabies and distemper 

• Main causes of death include lack of prey and habitat loss

Competition

• They mainly compete with Tigers and Leopards for local the habitat

IUCN Rating

• 3.1 (Endagered)

• 4500-10500 population

• Population at a uptrend 

Imapcts of Humans

• Humans have caused habitat loss and fragmentation 

• Some cases of dholes even being shot

• Humans discovered dholes in 1808