African Wild Dog

 

 

       

• Scientific name: Lycaon pictus
• Type of animal: Mammal
• Where found: Africa
  

     

African wild dogs are found in Sub-Saharan Africa (the part of Africa south of the Sahara Desert). These endangered canids live in packs consisting of an alpha pair and their offspring. They hunt at dawn and dusk, pursuing prey such as Thomson’s gazelles and other mid-sized antelopes.

The African wild dog is easily identified due to its patterned coat, which gives the species its alternative name of African Painted Dog.

It is estimated that fewer than 1,500 adult individual African wild dogs are left in the wild. The species’ population is fragmented over a wide area.

Why are African wild dogs endangered?

The biggest threat to the African wild dog is habitat loss. This is a species that needs a lot of space; a growing human population in the dogs’ natural habitat restricts the area in which it can hunt.