Canids: Indian Wild Dog or Dhole

Hardly known as the Indian wild dog because its spread is Pan Asiatic right up to Russia. In the food chain, I would place it among the tertiary carnivores along with the leopard and the tiger in the tropical jungles. 

Classification

After much work, the animal was finally placed among the canids in the genus cuon and species alpinus. Dhole does have an affinity with African wild dogs but the latter is placed in a different genus due to some morphological differences.

The pack hunter is lightly built (ave 15 kg) and compact adapted through evolution for speed and rapacity that describes its phenomenal abilities as a carnivore. The black bushy tail, golden-red fur, and pointed dog-like head are the distinct features of this hunting animal. Another unusual characteristic feature is that it does not bark unlike our domestic breeds but rather whistles.  They usually live in a pack of around fifteen animals but large packs have been observed. The leaders are alfa male and female but several breeding females may be found in the pack. 

The mode of hunting is by the chase and not ambush like a tiger. A long chase leads to an ungulate being consumed midway this is gory but that is nature at work. In Indian tiger reserves, the main prey is the spotted deer or chital. Usually, the pack goes for mid-sized animals. Interesting tales have been told about conflicts with the tiger.....   

At Kanha, I have seen the pack sizes of fifteen animals in earlier times but it is difficult to gauge their present status since sometimes the pack size has not been observed. The population at Kanha seems to have slimmed down but research will extract the truth. The animal is subject to hunting and is usually considered vermin it is killed by locals due to livestock predation and threat perception associated with carnivores. A disease carried by pariah dogs may be another factor that could locally endanger the predator. Another aspect of this dog is that it is a wanderer and local migration is a regular activity. These animals at Kanha have been seen in and around human settlements but conflict with humans has not been noted.   

Wild Dog in Pictures