DHOLES
Dhole or Asiatic wild dog is a large carnivore that lives in groups called packs. Dhole packs can have 2 to 25 members. Dholes share space with other predators like tigers, leopards, wolves, and snow leopards.
What is a dhole?
Dholes are found across central, south and southeast Asia. They primarily live in forest habitats. India currently has the highest number of dholes, with most populations found in the Western Ghats, central India and northeast India.
Where are dholes found?
Dholes are carnivores, which means their main diet consists of meat. They feed on a wide range of animals, from a tiny hare to the massive gaur. However, the sambar deer is the dhole's most common prey species across its range.
What do they eat?
We don't really know. It is notoriously difficult to identify individual dholes. So we do not yet have a clear idea of their population size. But expert opinions suggest that there may be 1000–2000 mature, adult dholes left.
How many dholes are there?
Why save dholes?
Dholes are endangered species. Their populations continue to decline because of habitat loss, decrease in prey animals and also perhaps through spread of diseases from domestic dogs. Dholes have already gone extinct from 80% of the areas where they historically occurred. Saving the dhole will require conducting quality scientific studies to better understand them, dedicated efforts from government agencies to protect their populations and habitats, and conservation support from the public.
IMAGE: UDAY KIRAN