Who do you think is the most skilled hunter in Africa? Lions? Phew, these lazy bums won't even lift their asses to catch someone. Hyenas? It's warmer, but still not quite the same. Humans? We're talking about wild animals, not innocent creatures. Well, let's not drag the cat by the tail, and you've probably already read the title. Meet the hyena dog, or the wild African dog – a dog that has rubbed its nose in the mouth of all the predators of the dark continent.
Why was our hero crossbred with a hyena? It's all because of his spotted coloring. But that's where their similarity ends, because genetically these animals are distant relatives.
The pesel is small (average height at the withers 60-70 cm), wiry and variegated. Its closest relative is the Asiatic red wolf, also known as the dhole. This animal is one of the oldest “boys” of the canine family, so it has one of the most powerful bites among canines. The African dog gnaws through the bones of its victims as easily as you crunch on your morning biscuit.
Teeth are, of course, cool, but our hero did not succeed in either height or strength. Therefore, to the philosophical question “What is strength, brother?” hyena dogs will answer: “In the pack!”. A group of 15-20 puppies is led by a dominant pair: dad and mom. They lead the hunt, monitor the safety of the pack and from time to time enjoy carnal pleasures. The rest of the group members are their children, they do not have the right to mate. That is right, there is no point in doing unnecessary things in front of their parents.
Despite the strict African laws, peace and harmony reign in the families of hyena dogs. Members of the pack live by the code of “their” boys: brother for brother. The creatures share food with each other, take care of the young together and even feed the wounded individuals, regurgitating pieces of meat for them. Communicating with each other, the dogs gushe out various sounds: from a dull bark to the chirping of birds.
Here we come to where we started. Unlike other predators of Africa, our hero is not so well-known among the general public. But local herbivores are very familiar with this predatory mouth. Well-established communication within the pack allows the dogs to bring down prey twice, or even three times larger than themselves. African dogs are excellent, if not perfect hunters. By distributing roles within the group and adhering to different strategies, our heroes are successful in 7 out of 10 cases! This is the highest result among African predators. For comparison: a lion is successful only every fourth hunt, a leopard is not much better, and the result of spotted hyenas is about 3/5. So yes, hyena dogs are the BEST predators of the continent.
Yes, hyena dogs are first-class hunters. But when your neighbors are lions and hyenas, you yourself can go to someone for dinner. Often, the neighbors mentioned above simply brazenly take away their honestly obtained game. Even a whole pack cannot fight off such large predators, so the dogs have to put up with the insolence of their neighbors.
It's sad that brute force defeats intelligence, but this is not the only problem that has fallen on the eared heads of our heroes. Despite their excellent skills, there are very few creatures left. According to the latest data, their population numbers about 6,600 individuals, of which only about 1,400 are adults and ready to reproduce. And the evil irony is not only that super hunters have become victims of uncontrolled shooting by farmers. Today, they are threatened not only by people with weapons. Their home, the savannah, is disappearing due to the expansion of human settlements, and diseases transmitted from domestic dogs, such as rabies, mow down flocks no worse than bullets. Strategy is strategy, but you can't go against such a set of problems. If earlier flocks of hundreds of individuals roamed the savannah, now meeting a group of 30 dogs is already a rarity.
