Hello again, welcome back to animals under threat. Today,
we will be covering one of Africa’s rarest and most endangered carnivore that
resides in Ethiopia, Africa. This beautiful canid is under threat from agriculture development and disease. Say
hello to the Ethiopian Wolf (Canis simensis).
The Ethiopian wolf is a canid that is characterized by
their long-limbed legs and slender body. They have a black bushy tail that can
measure up to 40cm in length and have a red/rusty coloured coat with white fur underbelly,
chest, throat and muzzle. Females Ethiopian wolves are smaller and paler in
colour than their male counterpart (awf.com, 2020).
Canis
simensis by Brent Huffman
Unlike
most canid species that feed on a variety of animals, the Ethiopian wolf has
evolved to be a specialized feeder of small rodents. Their bodies have evolved
a long slender snout, long legs, and well-spaced teeth to extract prey from
their burrows. In order to hunt, the wolf explores area’s with rich food and
slowly walk up to the burrows to investigate using their hearing (Yihune
& Bekele 2014).
Video of young wolf's attempt at hunting by BBC America.
Once
the prey has been located, the wolf slowly approaches it which this can take up
to an hour or more. If the prey runs, the wolf will run a zigzag pattern to
catch any rodents in the area (Yihune & Bekele 2014). Their preferred prey is
the big-headed African mole rat, (Tachyoryctes macrocephalus) and Ethiopian
highland hare (Lepus starcki) (Sillero-Zubiri, & Gottelli, 1995).
Mole Rat by Charles J Sharp (above) and Hare by unknown (Below)
Ethiopian wolves are family oriented with most packs
containing extended family members that help raise the dominant pair pups. The alpha
female wolf digs a burrow under a boulder or in a rocky crevice and can give
birth to 2-6 pups (iucnredlist.org, 2020). All members of the pack care and
protect the pups with younger females helping the dominant female with suckling. Young
females leave their parent pack at the age of two and search for another pack. This
is called female-biased dispersal which can help prevent inbreeding in packs as
related member cannot breed with other relatives (awf.com, 2020)
Canis simensis and pups by Dada Gottelii and Claudio
Sillero-Zubiri
The Ethiopian wolf is under threat from increasing
agriculture development and disease. Diseases such as rabies and canine distemper
from infected domestic dogs has had a negative impact on the wolf’s population
as this can lead to death of adults and pups (Marino et al, 2017). Increasing agriculture
development has had an impact on the wolf’s prey as the habitat their prey
lives in is being destroyed from agriculture (iucnredlist.org, 2020).
Next time, we will be covering a second largest species
of shark that feeds on plankton.
Marino, J., Sillero-Zubiri, C., Deressa, A., Bedin, E.,
Bitewa, A., Lema, F., Rskay, G., Banyard, A. & Fooks, A.R. 2017,
"Rabies and Distemper Outbreaks in Smallest Ethiopian Wolf
Population", Emerging infectious diseases, vol. 23, no. 12, pp. 2102-2104.
Yihune, M. & Bekele, A. 2014, "Feeding ecology
of the Ethiopian wolf in the Simien Mountains National Park, Ethiopia",
African Journal of Ecology, vol. 52, no. 4, pp. 484-490
https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/3748/10051312
Sillero-Zubiri, C. & Gottelli, D. 1995, "Diet
and Feeding Behavior of Ethiopian Wolves (Canis simensis)", Journal of
Mammalogy, vol. 76, no. 2, pp. 531-541.
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