---
title: "What the sources say about the African Wild Dog (Painted Dog) | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "55 claims from the African Wild Dog (Painted Dog) profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
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# What the sources say about the African Wild Dog (Painted Dog) (*Lycaon pictus*)

> 55 claims from the African Wild Dog (Painted Dog) profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [African Wild Dog (Painted Dog)](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/african-wild-dog/)

## African Wild Dog. African Wildlife Foundation.

https://www.awf.org/wildlife-conservation/african-wild-dog

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A coat no two dogs wear the same way | No two wild dogs are marked exactly the same, making it easy to identify individuals. |
| Mostly savanna and dry country | They are found mostly in arid zones and in the savanna. (note: 'dry country' is AWF's 'arid zones') |
| Gazelles and other antelope, warthogs, and wildebeest calves | hunt for a wide variety of prey, including gazelles and other antelopes, warthogs, wildebeest calves, rats, and birds |
| Adults weigh 18 to 36 kilograms and stretch about a meter long | Weight 18 to 36 kilograms (40 to 79 pounds) ... Size About 1 meter in length (30 to 43 inches) (note: 'Adults' is the reading of a species fact box; pups are born weighing less than a pound (Oregon Zoo)) |
| with large, bat-like ears and a colorful, patchy coat | has a colorful, patchy coat; large bat-like ears |
| No two wild dogs are marked exactly alike, which makes each one easy to identify | No two wild dogs are marked exactly the same, making it easy to identify individuals. |
| they usually stay paired for life | Every hunting pack has a dominant pair. They are usually the only pair that remains monogamous for life. |
| the whole pack helps raise the pups | The entire pack is involved in the welfare of the pups. |
| Hunters return to the den and regurgitate meat for the nursing mother and the pups | The hunting members of the pack return to the den where they regurgitate meat for the nursing female and pups. |
| There's little aggression within a pack and little bullying in its hierarchy | there is a general lack of aggression exhibited between members of the pack ... there is little intimidation among the social hierarchy |
| packmates take care of members that are hurt or sick | They cooperate in taking care of the wounded and sick members |
| habitat fragmentation is the main threat | The principal threat to this species is habitat fragmentation |
| It increases clashes with people and the loss of small local populations to disease outbreaks | habitat fragmentation, which increases human-wildlife conflict and localized, small population extinction due to epidemic disease |
| As farms, roads and settlements spread, wild dogs are losing the spaces where they once roamed freely | As human populations expand, leading to agriculture, settlements, and roads, wild dogs are losing the spaces in which they were once able to roam freely. |
| Running Out of Space | Wild dogs are losing their living spaces. |
| They typically live 10 to 12 years | Life span 10 to 12 years |

## African painted dog. Oregon Zoo.

https://www.oregonzoo.org/animals/african-painted-dog

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| a hunt run at up to 30 mph until the prey tires | chase their prey at up to 30 miles an hour for up to 3 ½ miles until the hunted animal slows down from fatigue |
| chasing prey at up to 30 mph for as long as three and a half miles until it tires and slows down | chase their prey at up to 30 miles an hour for up to 3 ½ miles until the hunted animal slows down from fatigue |
| in sub-Saharan Africa | live in the savanna, grasslands, and open range of sub-Saharan Africa (note: 'in', not 'across': the same page says most survivors are limited to the south and east of their original range) |
| African wild dogs live in the savanna, grasslands and open country of sub-Saharan Africa | live in the savanna, grasslands, and open range of sub-Saharan Africa (note: 'open country' glosses 'open range'.) |
| A pack can run at up to 30 mph and keep going for as much as three and a half miles | chase their prey at up to 30 miles an hour for up to 3 ½ miles |
| chasing prey such as an antelope, warthog or wildebeest calf until it tires and slows down | until the hunted animal slows down from fatigue (note: the prey names are the AWF diet list (stats.diet claim); the chase-to-fatigue is Oregon Zoo's) |
| Their hunts succeed 70 to 90 percent of the time | Their hunts are successful 70-90% of the time. |
| Wild dogs hunt mostly at dawn and dusk to avoid lions and other predators | hunting mostly at dawn and dusk to avoid lions and other predators |
| Only the dominant male and female in a pack breed | Only the dominant pair breeds and has young |
| Their hunts succeed 70 to 90 percent of the time | Their hunts are successful 70-90% of the time. |
| A pack can chase prey like an antelope or wildebeest at up to 30 mph, for as much as three and a half miles, until the animal tires and slows down | chase their prey at up to 30 miles an hour for up to 3 ½ miles until the hunted animal slows down from fatigue ... they can take down not only a medium-sized antelope but also larger animals like the kudu and the wildebeest |
| for a pack that talks in high-pitched squeaks | They work as a team, communicating with each other using high-pitched squeaking noises that sound like tennis shoes rubbing on a gym floor. (note: vibe.reason; replaces 'high-energy African vocal cuts', which paired by geography, and the unsourced '170 BPM' (#184)) |
| runs prey down at up to 30 mph over as much as three and a half miles | chase their prey at up to 30 miles an hour for up to 3 ½ miles until the hunted animal slows down from fatigue (note: vibe.reason) |

## African wild dogs: Frequently Asked Questions. Tsavo Trust.

https://tsavotrust.org/african-wild-dogs-frequently-asked-questions/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Wild dogs themselves pose no known threat to people, and actively avoid them | African wild dogs pose no known threat to humans and actively avoid people. (note: body; the sentence stats.dangerLevel: Medium rests on. Tiers are capabilities: a pack that kills antelope with repeated bites can injure, so not Low, and it has no recorded attack on a person and avoids people, which is Medium's 'real weapons and little interest in using them on anything your size', not High (#184)) |

## AnAge entry for Lycaon pictus. AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Build 15.

https://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Lycaon_pictus

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| the record in captivity is 15.1 years | record longevity in captivity is only 15.1 years (note: AnAge's headline 'Maximum longevity 17 years (captivity)' cites ref 0671, but its own observation text gives ref 0671 (Weigl 2005, captive records) as 15.1 years and the 17 as an estimate from Nowak 1999; the captive record is 15.1) |

## Chavez et al. (2019). Comparative genomics provides new insights into the remarkable adaptations of the African wild dog (Lycaon pictus). Scientific Reports.

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44772-5

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| four-toed front feet | having only four digits on their forefeet |
| Four Toes Up Front | having only four digits on their forefeet |
| Wolves keep a small first toe on the front foot, called a dewclaw | note the small first digit in gray wolf called the “dewclaw” |
| Losing that toe is unique among living canids, and African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) are the ones that lost it | the loss of the first digit on the forefeet ... is unique among living canids |
| A genomic study of the species suggests the loss comes from mutations that may let the natural cell death that shapes a growing paw destroy that toe instead of sparing it | We suggest that the amino acid deletions in FANCC, FANCD2, and FANCM found exclusively in AWDs may reduce the binding affinity of the FA protein complex to CtBP1, thus allowing the loss of the first digit through apoptosis (note: 'natural cell death' is apoptosis; 'shapes a growing paw' is the interdigital apoptosis during early digit development; 'sparing' is the paper's 'protected from apoptosis') |
| The payoff is a longer stride and more speed | This trait increases their stride length and speed |
| Within the dog family, the wild dog is the most specialized for running | Within the Canidae, the African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) is the most specialized with regards to cursorial adaptations (specialized for running) |
| Wolves keep a small first toe on the front foot, called a dewclaw | note the small first digit in gray wolf called the “dewclaw” |
| Losing that toe is unique among living canids | the loss of the first digit on the forefeet ... is unique among living canids |
| African wild dogs are the ones that lost it | Within the Canidae, the African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) is the most specialized with regards to cursorial adaptations (specialized for running), having only four digits on their forefeet. |
| A genomic study suggests that mutations found only in wild dogs may let the natural cell death which shapes a growing paw destroy that toe instead of sparing it | We suggest that the amino acid deletions in FANCC, FANCD2, and FANCM found exclusively in AWDs may reduce the binding affinity of the FA protein complex to CtBP1, thus allowing the loss of the first digit through apoptosis |
| The payoff is a longer stride that helps power their long chases | This trait increases their stride length and speed allowing them to pursue prey for long distances in open plain habitats |

## Walker et al. (2017). Sneeze to leave: African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) use variable quorum thresholds facilitated by sneezes in collective decisions. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.

https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2017.0347

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Before the group moves off together, wild dogs hold a "rally," a high-energy greeting session | take part in stereotyped social rallies: high energy greeting ceremonies that occur before collective movements |
| Researchers watching packs in Botswana found that once a rally has enough quick, audible sneezes, the pack is likely to leave | we investigate collective decisions by free-ranging African wild dog packs in Botswana ... Not all rallies result in collective movements ... the probability of rally success (i.e. group departure) is predicted by a minimum number of audible rapid nasal exhalations (sneezes), within the rally |
| It takes fewer sneezes when a dominant dog starts the rally | the number of sneezes needed for the group to depart (i.e. the quorum) was reduced whenever dominant individuals initiated rallies |
| A dominant dog isn't required, though: if enough of the others agree, the group may overrule the leaders | dominant participation increases the likelihood of a rally's success, but is not a prerequisite. As such, the 'will of the group' may override dominant preferences when the consensus of subordinates is sufficiently great. |
| A Sneeze Is a Vote | specific behavioural mechanisms (here, sneezing) allow for negotiation (in effect, voting) |
| With sneezes | the probability of rally success (i.e. group departure) is predicted by a minimum number of audible rapid nasal exhalations (sneezes), within the rally |
| Before the group moves off together, a pack holds a high-energy greeting session called a rally | take part in stereotyped social rallies: high energy greeting ceremonies that occur before collective movements |
| Researchers studying wild packs in Botswana found that once a rally has enough audible sneezes, the pack is likely to leave | we investigate collective decisions by free-ranging African wild dog packs in Botswana ... the probability of rally success (i.e. group departure) is predicted by a minimum number of audible rapid nasal exhalations (sneezes), within the rally |
| It takes fewer sneezes when a dominant dog starts the rally, though the group can still leave without one | the number of sneezes needed for the group to depart (i.e. the quorum) was reduced whenever dominant individuals initiated rallies, suggesting that dominant participation increases the likelihood of a rally's success, but is not a prerequisite |

## Dröge et al. (2016). Spatial and temporal avoidance of risk within a large carnivore guild. Ecology and Evolution.

https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.2616

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| In one park in Zambia, they also avoided areas that lions used heavily | within Liuwa Plain National Park in western Zambia ... wild dogs avoided areas heavily used by lions |
| The researchers suggest wild dogs may be more likely than cheetahs to die out locally, especially in open, uniform country where that avoidance is difficult | partitioning may not allow for coexistence for one subordinate species, the African wild dog, while it does for cheetah. Because of differences in responses to dominant competitors, African wild dogs may be more prone to competitive exclusion (local extirpation), particularly in open, uniform ecosystems with simple (often wildebeest dominated) prey communities, where spatial avoidance is difficult |

## Woodroffe et al. (2025). Lycaon pictus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2025: e.T12436A221299510.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2025-2.rlts.t12436a221299510.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| They are Endangered | IUCN Red List category: Endangered (EN). |