Wild dogs were once treated as vermin in African game reserves and shot on sight. Only recently have conservationists halted this indiscriminate slaughter, but they are almost too late to save this magnificent African carnivore. The photographs and text in this book closely document the life of a pack of dogs living in the Moremi Wildlife Reserve in northern Botswana, celebrating their untamed existence but also pointing out the vulnerability of the species in Africa. This captures the wild dogs at play, with their young, hunting and eating.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
For millennia, Lycaon pictus, the wild dog, roamed the savannas of sub-Saharan Africa. A highly social scavenger, much like the wolf of the Northern Hemisphere, the wild dog served an essential function in the grasslands ecosystem, culling sick and injured ungulates from once-vast herds. With the advent of large-scale farming and livestock production, however, the wild dog was seen as a threat to progress and was hunted out. Only some 5,000 individuals survive today, making Lycaon pictus Africa's most endangered carnivore. This heavily illustrated look at the life of the wild dog makes a well-reasoned argument for its preservation.
From Library Journal
In 1989, the authors and photography team Helene Heldring and Dave Hamman embarked on what would become a four-year effort focused on the African wild dog. As is true of many carnivores that compete with humans for food and living space, an untainted study population was difficult to locate. The researchers finally decided on the Mombo Pack on Chief's Island in Botswana's Okavango delta area. This coffee-table account includes over 300 superb color photos offering a broad picture of the pack's behaviors, from pack structure to hunting techniques. A brief suggested reading list lacks two related works of interest: noted zoologist Jonathan Scott's Painted Wolves (Viking, 1991) and Mark and Delia Owens's Cry of the Kalahari (1984). (The Owenses also worked in Botswana but were denied reentry owing to their criticism of conservation efforts there; McNutt et al. gratefully acknowledge the government's support. A very readable book; highly recommended.?Edell Marie Schaefer, Brookfield P.L., Wis.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is a great book!!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Running Wild: Dispelling the Myths of the African Wild Dog (Hardcover)
Hi, I'm an OAC biology student (that's grade 13 in Ontario) who is doing my ISP on African wild dogs. This is the best book I have ever found on wild dogs and probably the best ever written. I could not believe my luck when I found it. It is an excellent, coffee-table-type book with lots of beautiful pictures that you would like even if you were not specially interested in wild dogs. You will be surprised at how similar the dogs look in the pictures to your own dog.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A fascinating look at the ecology of the African wild dog,
By A Customer
This review is from: Running Wild: Dispelling the Myths of the African Wild Dog (Hardcover)
Are you fascinated by wolves? Do you dream of going on safari in Africa? If you answer yes to either question then this book will be of interest to you. I had the good luck to see a pack of 10 wild dogs while on safari in Botswana in September of 1998. Being a wolf enthusiast, I was very interested in the similarities and differences between the American grey wolf and the African wild dog. This book was in the library of each safari camp I stayed in so I had the pleasure of studying about the wild dogs while in their native habitat. As you'll learn from this book, wild dogs are extremely social, even more so than grey wolves, and very efficient, successful predators. The photographs in this book are fantastic and the text is well written, well organized, and aimed at the general public rather than the scientific community. The author continues his African wild dog research in Botswana. The fate of these fascinating predators is very precarious due to their small population and the relentless persecution by people, similar to that experienced by the grey wolf in America earlier this century.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful, Wonderful, Wonderful,
By Bob (CA) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Running Wild: Dispelling the Myths of the African Wild Dog (Hardcover)
A terrific book for all types of nature-loving readers. If you like pictures, they're here. If you want the best information available about African Wild Dogs and efforts to save them, it's definitely here. All people who are fascinated by wild animals will find this book to be a treasure. The photography is beautiful...It's the next best thing to being there. Leave this book on your coffee table and I guarantee that every guest will pick it up. These animals truly are in trouble. McNutt does a good job explaining exactly why these dogs are endangered (or should be classified as such). Like most books published under Smithsonian, this one is a keeper.
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