a day ago
Endangered creature — thought missing from India forest — rediscovered. See it
Covering more than 9,500 square miles of land in northeastern India, the Kaziranga-Karbi Anglong Landscape, or KKAL, is fragmented.
The land is a 'complex mosaic of protected and non-protected areas' and is pieced together by a series of natural corridors, according to a study published June 26 in the peer-reviewed Journal of Threatened Taxa.
During a reconnaissance survey along these interconnected corridors of land, researchers set up camera traps to capture and identify animals that may be using the pathways to move between the islands of natural land, according to the study.
What they didn't expect was to rediscover a species once thought missing in the region.
From February 2021 to December 2022, a total of 83 camera traps captured 15,278 'camera-trap days' of images, according to the study.
Six of these photos were different from the others.
Captured by camera traps for the first time in October 2022, the images show an Asiatic wild dog, or dhole, passing in front of the lens, researchers said.
'This was the only instance where we captured a Dhole on camera in the landscape during the study period,' researchers said. '... The habitat consists of moist mixed deciduous forest, dominated by teak.'
The sighting marks the first photo evidence of a dhole in the region after it was 'extirpated,' or eliminated, in the 1990s, researchers said.
Dholes are listed as an endangered species, according to the study, and are protected under the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act from 1972.
They were once abundant across the Tian Shan and Altai mountains in Russia, Mongolia and Kazakhstan, as well as further south through China, Tibet, Nepal and India, according to the study.
Their range has shrunk significantly from threats like 'retaliatory killing, habitat loss, and prey depletion,' researchers said. Less than 25% of their original range still stands today.
Dholes are dogs and communal hunters, typically traveling in packs of up to 30 animals but can hunt alone or in pairs when prey is scarce, according to the study.
They are about the size of a German shepherd, but look more like a fox with elongated legs, according to the San Diego Zoo.
'Dholes are incredibly athletic. They are fast runners, excellent swimmers and impressive jumpers,' the zoo said. 'These skills are critical when the pack is hunting. In some protected areas, they share habitat with tigers and leopards.'
They are sometimes called whistle dogs because of an 'eerie whistle' they use to communicate with one another, according to the San Diego Zoo. They also make clucks and screams that are unique to these dogs.
The KKAL is in the Assam state of India, a northeastern state south of Bhutan and China.
The research team includes Mujahid Ahamad, Jyotish Ranjan Deka, Priyanka Borah, Umar Saeed, Ruchi Badola and Syed Ainul Hussain.
