Wolf

True Wild Life | Wolf | The wolf is thought to be an ice age survivor, dating wolves around 300,000 years ago. The wolf is accepted to be the ancestor of the domestic dog as the wolf is thought to have selectively bred in order to breed appealing traits typical of puppies and to eliminate the not so appealing traits of adult wolves. The grey wolf is a highly adaptive animal found in all kinds of terrain. Wolves inhabit forests, deserts, mountains, tundras, grasslands and even urban areas with the wolf being a particularly dominant and ruthless predator within it's environment. They vary in color from pure white to pure black and every shade of brown and gray inbetween. At one time the wolf had the widest distribution of any mammal. The biggest wolves on earth live in Alaska and average 125-135 lb. One specimen was taken that weighed 200 lb. The smallest wolves live in Iran and average about 60 lb.

The wolf lives to be approximately 10 years old in the wild. Wolves live in packs that generally consist of the alpha male wolf, his mate the alpha female, and their offspring of various ages. Other wolves may also join, but it is the parents that are the leaders. The wolf has no real natural predators; their biggest threat is other wolf packs on adjacent territories. The wolf has been known to live up to 20 years old in captivity. Wolves are carnivorous animals and generally hunt large animals but wolves will also hunt smaller animals if they are need of their daily meal. Wolves hunt together in their packs and work together as a team in order to catch and kill a large animal such as moose and deer. Wolves are opportunists and will not waste their energy chasing a healthy deer 10 miles when an injured or sick one is available. The native Alaskan peoples call the wolf the "wild shepherd of the caribou".

Wolves have a layer of thick fur which is particularly needed for those wolves that inhabit areas of the Arctic circle where it can be extremely cold. It is during the winter months in these areas that calories are most critical . Larger animals such as elk and deer suffer greatly from the cold and lack of food to eat and it is during this time that the prey of the wolf is at its slowest and therefore is easier to catch. Wolves are considered to be an endangered species today as wolves have been widely exterminated from their former ranges by hunting, poisoning, and trapping to procure their fur and to protect livestock. Wolves have also been severely affected by habitat loss and have been pushed into smaller and smaller territories where the food source may not be plentiful enough to sustain a hungry wolf pack and where heavy inbreeding occurs.

Wolves tend to mate in late winter to early spring and the wolf cubs are born are born a couple of months later when the weather is warmer and prey is abundant. The wolf cubs then have the rest of the year to grow stronger in order to be able to survive their first cold winter. Wolf cubs stay with their mother in the wolf pack with the male wolf cubs often leaving to form a pack of their own. Wolves can interbreed freely with dogs, redwolves, coyotes, and jackals to produce fertile offspring. This is a case of incomplete speciation. There are physical, behavioral, and ecological differences between these species, but they are fully genetically compatible. None of the animals in this group can breed with foxes, which are too far separated genetically.

Raccoon Dog

True Wild Life | Raccoon Dog | The raccoon dog is a small species of canine, native to parts of eastern Asia. As it's name suggests, this wild dog has markings that closely resemble those of a raccoon and has also been known to display similar behaviours including the washing of food. Despite their similarities however, raccoon dogs are not actually closely related to the raccoons found in North America. The raccoon dog is now found across Japan and throughout Europe where it has been introduced and appears to be thriving. Historically however, the raccoon dog's natural range stretched through Japan and across eastern China where the raccoon dog is now extinct in many parts. Raccoon dogs are found inhabiting forests and woodland, that is close to water.

Raccoon dogs are unique canines as they are the only dog-like mammal that hibernates through the winter. Although raccoon dog hibernation is not true hibernation, it means that raccoon dogs are able to sleep through severe snowstorms when there is not enough food to allow them to survive. Raccoon dogs usually become more active again in February when the warmer, spring weather begins to return. There are five different species of raccoon dog found across eastern Asia and in parts of Europe, all of which have been severely affected by deforestation of their native woodlands. Raccoon dogs are also known to have incredibly dexterous front paws which come in very handy when trying to catch slippery food in the water and when climbing trees.

Raccoon dogs are carnivorous animals meaning that they only hunt and eat other animals in order to survive. As raccoon dogs spend a great deal of time close to water, their diet is primarily made up from frogs and fish along with rodents, small birds, eggs and invertebrates such as insects and spiders. The wolf is the main predator of the raccoon dog as packs of wolves are known to kill large numbers of raccoon dogs in the spring and summer months when they are also feeding their growing young. Foxes and wildcats are the other main predators of the raccoon dog along with humans who have hunted them for their meat and thick fur.

Raccoon dog pups are usually born when the summer begins in late April to early May. After a gestation period of up to 12 weeks, the female raccoon dog gives birth to a litter of between 5 and 16 raccoon dog pups which are blind when they are first born. Both raccoon dog parents help to raise their young until they are big enough to become independent and begin hunting for themselves. Today, although raccoon dog populations are thriving in their introduced habitats in Europe, wild populations in the far east have been rapidly declining mainly due to over-hunting and habitat loss.

Jackal

True Wild Life | Jackal | The jackal is a medium sized member of the dog family, originally found in Africa, Asia and southeast Europe. There are four main species of jackal with these jackal species being the golden jackal, the side-striped jackal, the black-backed jackal and the Ethiopian wolf jackal. The golden jackal is the most northernly species of jackal and can be found as far east as Burma in Southeast Asia. Jackals are generally found in packs of roughly between 10 and 30 jackal individuals. Jackals use their large group numbers to their advantage and work together in a similar way to a wolf pack to both occasionally hunt for food but more so that the jackals can protect one another.

Jackals are small canines that have adapted to hunting small mammals, birds and reptiles. Some species of jackal have even been known to eat poisonous snakes. Jackals are carnivorous mammals and jackals will often scavenge the remains of kills made by other larger predators. The jackal is a nocturnal mammal that can easily maintain speeds of 16km an hour for long periods of time. Although the jackal belongs to a jackal pack, jackals often prefer to hunt alone or with only one other jackal. This means that the jackals tend to have a higher chance of ambushing their prey as if the jackals regularly hunted in large groups, the jackals would have less success in being stealthy and silent.

Although the majority of the diet of the jackal is made up of meat, many jackal individuals (particularly those jackals living in the tropics of Southeast Asia) will often eat plant matter if no meat can be found. Jackals are very territorial animals and jackals have no hesitation in defending their marked territory. Jackals have a wide range of vocal sounds that are specific to each jackal family meaning that is rare for families of competing jackals to come into accidental contact with one another.

Jackals inhabit crevices in rocks and dens made by other animals in order to keep the jackals cool while they sleep. Although many jackal individuals live a nocturnal existence, particularly those jackals that inhabit areas close to humans, some jackals in more remote areas are slightly more diurnal and will be out hunting during the cooler times of the day.

Dog

 

True Wild Life | Dog | Dogs are thought to have been first domesticated in East Asia thousands of years ago. People primarily used dogs for guarding the hunters and areas of land. Todays domestic dog is actually a subspecies of the gray wolf, a type of dog that is feared by most humans. Many people today, in all countries around the world, keep dogs as household pets and many even regard their dog as a family member.

There are currently around 800 different species of domestic dog worldwide. Included are mountain dogs such as Saint Bernards or Huskys and territorial guard dogs like the Neapolitan and Tibetan Mastiffs.

Dog Foot Facts

• Dogs have soft pads on the bottom of their feet which help them to run quickly and quietly

• Dogs have sharp, strong claws on their feet which allow them to grip when running and also helps them to dig.

• Some dog species have dew claws on the sides of their feet which help the dog to balance when running, like the baby toes on humans.

• The dew claws on a dog never really touch the ground but are often used to help the dog to lightly grip their prey.

• The paws of a dog are around half the size of the paws of the wolf, as the dog is generally not as powerful as the wolf. 

Dog Teeth Facts

• Dogs have highly specialized teeth which allows them to both bite and tear meat apart.

• The teeth of the dog are small than those of their wolf relatives as the dog has no need to be able to catch and kill such large prey.

• The tongue of the dog is vital in heat regulation as moisture on the tongue cools instantly and the cooler air is then passed into the respiratory system.

• Puppies have around 28 teeth but the average adult dog has 42 teeth which include 12 incisors, 4 canines, 16 premolars and 10 molars.

• When a puppy is about four months old, they shed their baby teeth and grow their permanent adult teeth which are much stronger.

Dingo

True Wild Life | Dingo | The dingo is medium-sized canine natively found on the Australian continent and even into South-East Asia. The dingo is thought to have once been a domestic dog that has returned to living in the wild now for thousands of years. The dingo can be found in a variety of habitats throughout the Australian mainland and it's surrounding islands. Dingos are in both woodlands and rainforests, shrublands and even on the outskirts of the arid Australian deserts.

Due to the fact that the dingo (along with domestic dog breeds) is the largest predator found on the land on the Australian continent, the dingo is considered to be an apex predator and therefore plays a vital role in the different ecosystems that occur across the continent. Despite having once been domesticated, today the dingo lives a life completely independent of humans, and dingos can be found in packs containing around 10 dingo individuals. Some dingos are nocturnal animals, where others are more active during the day, but this depends on the climate where the dingo lives.

The dingo is a carnivorous animal and one of Australia's most dominant predators. The diet of the dingo is similar to that of other pack-canines such as wolves, as they hunt rabbits, rodents, small mammals, lizards, birds, wallabys and even the occasional kangaroo. Due to the large size and dominant nature of the dingo, the dingo has no real predators within its natural environment besides humans who are responsible for the destruction of the dingo's habitat, and the odd crocodile.

Dingos breed once a year, generally before August in the south and after August in the north. After a gestation period of around 2 months, the female dingo gives birth to litter of between 1 and 10 pups. The pups are blind when they are first born but grow up quickly, as dingo pups leave their mother and the den when they are 8 weeks old. Today, mainly due to deforestation and habitat loss, the dingo is considered to be an animal that is vulnerable to extinction. In Australia, the dingo is protected animal and part of their conservation work includes insuring that the dingo does not start interbreeding with domestic dogs, therefore keeping the dingo as a species, pure.

Dhole

True Wild Life | Dhole | The dhole (also known as the Asiatic Wild Dog, Indian Wild Dog and the Red Dog) is an endangered wild dog native to the jungles of Asia. Although the dhole is very similar in appearance to the African Wild dog and the Bush dog, the dhole is the only member of it's genus. Historically, the dhole was found though East and Southern Asia, from the Russian far east right down to Sumatra, and although today the range of the dhole has been significantly reduced, the dhole inhabits a wide variety of habitats including thick, deciduous woodlands to jungles and tropical rainforests.

There are three different species of dhole that are very similar in characteristics and only really differ in location and fur colour. Although a dominant predator within their environment, the dhole populations have been heavily affected by disease introduced by domesticated animals such as cats and dogs. Like other medium-sized canines, the dhole is a highly sociable animal that spends it's life as part of a pack. The dhole is well-known for the vocal calls that it uses to communicate with it's pack. It is said that the repetitive whistles of the dhole are so distinctive that individuals animals can be easily identified by their calls.

The dhole is a carnivorous and fairly dominant predator within it's natural environment, working as part of a pack to try and bring down larger prey to feed the whole group. The majority of the dhole's diet however is made of smaller animals including lizards, frogs and rodents. Due to the dominant nature of the dhole and the fact that it often has protection from it's pack, there are few animals that are of any threat to the dhole in the wild. Large wild cats such as tigers and leopards are the only natural predators of the dhole, as the biggest threat to the world's dhole populations has been from humans.

After breeding, female dholes give birth to between 5 and 12 pups after a two month long gestation period. Dhole pups grow rapidly and are cared for by both their parents, and by other adult dholes in the pack. The dhole pups begin to hunt when they are a few months old and reach adult size by the time they are about a year and a half old. Today, the dhole is endangered in the wild as populations have been reduced to less than 2,000 individuals across their native territories. The main reason for the severe decline in the dhole population numbers is thought to be through habitat loss and hunting from humans.

African Wild Dog

True Wild Life | African Wild Dog | The African wild dog (also known as the painted dog and the Cape hunting dog) is a large species of canine found across sub-Saharan Africa. The African wild dog is most easily identified from other dogs by their brightly mottled fur.

African wild dogs are found naturally roaming the deserts, open-plains and arid savannas of southern Africa were the range of the African wild dog has decreased rapidly. It is thought that the African wild dog was once found in nearly 40 different African countries but that number is much lower today, at between 10 and 25.

The African wild dog is a large sized dog compared to other canine species, and it's mottled fur makes the African wild dog an easily identifiable species. The fur of the African wild dog not only looks pretty but the pattern is unique to each individual, and helps the African wild dog to blend into it's surroundings.

African wild dogs are sociable animals that gather in packs of generally between 10 and 30 African wild dog individuals. African wild dogs congregate together to hunt and it is thought that African wild dog packs were often much larger before the species became so endangered in the wild.

The African wild dog is a carnivorous and opportunistic predator, hunting larger animals on the African plains in their groups. African wild dogs primarily prey on larger mammals such as warthogs and numerous antelope species and also supplement their diet with rodents and insects.

Due to the relatively large size and dominant nature of the African wild dog, the African wild dog has few natural predators within it's native habitat. Lions and hyenas have been known to prey on African wild dog individuals that have been separated from the pack, along with human hunters and poachers.

In  African wild dog packs, there is usually only one breeding pair, which are the dominant male and female African wild dogs. After a gestation period of around 70 days, the female African wild dog gives birth to between 2 and 20 African wild dog cubs. The African wild dog cubs are fed and cared for by the entire pack until they are old enough to become independent and leave to join another African wild dog pack.

Today, the African wild dog is an endangered species as African wild dog population numbers have been rapidly declining. Habitat loss caused by deforestation and the spread of disease by livestock are two of the main causes for African wild dog loss.