Canis lupus dingo

The dingo (Canis familiaris, Canis familiaris dingo, Canis dingo, or Canis lupus dingo), is an ancient (basal) lineage of the dog found in Australia. Its taxonomic classification is debated, as indicated by the variety of scientific names currently applied to it in different publications. It has been considered a form of domestic dog that does not deserve to be recognized as a subspecies, as a dog or wolf subspecies (probably descended from the Asian wolf), or as a full species in its own right.

The dingo is a medium-sized canine with a lean, sturdy body adapted for speed, agility, and stamina. The three main coat colorations of the dingo are light reddish or brown, black and brown, or creamy white. The skull is wedge-shaped and appears large in proportion to the body. The dingo is closely related to the New Guinea singing dog or the New Guinea highland wild dog: the lineage of all of these diverged early from the lineage that gave rise to today's domestic dogs, and can be traced across the archipelago. Malay to Asia.

The oldest known dingo fossil, found in Western Australia, dates back 3,450 years. However, genomic analyzes indicate that the dingo arrived in Australia 8,300 years ago, but the human population that brought it remains unknown. Dingo morphology has not changed in the last 3,500 years, suggesting that no artificial selection has been applied in this period.

The dingo's habitat spans most of Australia, but they are absent in the south-east and Tasmania, as well as a part of the south-west. As Australia's largest land predator, dingoes feed on mammals the size of even the great red kangaroo, as well as birds, reptiles, fish, crabs, frogs, insects and seeds. The dingo's competitors are cuoles (native), and European red foxes and feral cats (introduced). A dingo herd is usually made up of a couple, their young from the current year, and sometimes from the previous year.

Dingoes were reported by early British settlers in Port Jackson in 1788 alongside indigenous Australians, and later on Melville Island in 1818, and on the lower Darling and Murray rivers in 1862, suggesting indicates that dingoes had been part of some kind of domestication by Australian aborigines. When animal husbandry began to spread across Australia in the early 19th century, dingoes began preying on sheep and cattle. Since then, numerous population control measures have been applied, with limited success. The dingo is recognized as a native animal by law in all Australian jurisdictions.

The dingo plays a prominent role in the Dreamtime stories of indigenous Australians; however, it is rarely depicted in their cave paintings in comparison to the extinct thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian wolf or tiger.

They have characteristics of both wolves and modern dogs, and are thought to be similar in appearance to the ancestors of today's dogs. The name dingo comes from the dharuk or eora, an aboriginal language, spoken in the Sydney area.

Features

Adult dingoes typically measure 50 to 59 centimeters, with an average weight of 23 to 32 kilograms, although specimens weighing 55 kilograms have been recorded. Males are larger and weigh more than females. Dingoes from South Australia tend to be smaller than those from the North West. Australian dingoes are invariably larger than Asian ones. Compared to domestic dogs of similar size, they have longer muzzles, larger incisors, and a flatter skeleton, with a larger nape.

The coat color is normally ginger yellow, reddish, sandy yellow. Albino dingoes have been reported. Any other color is usually considered an indicator of hybridization. but researchers have observed black and brindle coats in dingo populations that have not had contact with other canids and do not hybridize in DNA analysis.^{[citation needed]} Purebred dingoes have white hair on their legs and chest. Most dingoes have white markings on the chest, feet, and tip of the tail; some also have a dark muzzle. The chromosome number of dingoes is 2n=78.

Organization of the species

Most dingoes are seen alone, though they usually belong to packs that meet every few days to socialize. Territory markings and attacks on rival packs increase at these gatherings. Dingo herds typically have 3 to 12 members in areas with little human activity. A hierarchy is distinguished, also differentiated one for females and another for males, and the hierarchy is maintained through aggressiveness. Breeding is limited to the dominant pair, with subordinate members taking care of the pups.

The size of a dingo's territory has little to do with pack size and more to do with terrain and prey. Dingoes from southwestern Australia have the largest territories. Sometimes dingoes will disperse from home territories; specimens have been recorded traveling 250 kilometers.

Dingoes don't bark as much as ordinary dogs, dingoes howl a lot and often. Three basic howls with ten variations have been recognized. The howl is used both to attract pack members and to repel intruders. In choral howls, the pitch of the howl increases with the number of participants. Male dingoes mark more frequent territory than females, and this increases in breeding seasons.

Playback

Like wolves, but unlike dogs, dingoes breed once a year. Male dingoes are fertile year-round, but females are fertile only during their estrous cycle, which occurs once a year. once a year. Females are fertile at the age of two years, while males are fertile at the age of one to three years. Dingoes that are dominant in packs tend to enter their estrous cycle earlier than do dingoes. subordinates. Captive dingoes have an estrous period of ten to twelve days, while wild ones last about two months. The gestation period lasts from sixty-one to sixty-nine days, reaching around five pups. per litter. There are usually more females than males. Pups are usually born in the months of May to July, although dingoes living in tropical areas breed at any time of the year. Hybrid dingoes go into estrus twice a year, with a gestation period of 58 to 56 days. Cubs are usually born in dens or rabbit holes. Cubs do not become independent until the age of three to six months, although some pack-dwelling cubs remain in packs until the age of twelve months. Unlike wolves, in which the alpha or dominant male prevents subordinates from reproducing, the alpha dingo inhibits subordinates from reproducing through infanticide.

Eating habits

Over 170 different animal species have been identified in Australia in the dingo's diet, ranging from small insects to water buffalo. Dam specialization depends on the region. In the wetlands of northern Australia, the most common prey items are magpie goose, dusty rat and wallaby, while in arid central Australia the most common prey items are European rabbits, long-eared rats, mouse common and red kangaroo. In northwestern habitats, eastern wallabies and red kangaroos are preferred, while in the south it is possums, wallabies, and wombats.

In Asia they live closer to humans, so they feed on rice, fruit and garbage. Dingoes have been observed hunting insects, rats, and lizards in rural areas of Thailand and Sulawesi. They normally hunt small game such as rabbits individually, but when hunting large game such as kangaroos, they gather in groups. They hunt livestock in times of food shortages.

Potential extinction

As a result of crossbreeding with dogs introduced by Europeans, purebred dingoes are in decline. In the early 20th century one-third of dingoes were crossbreeds between dingoes and domestic dogs, and although the crossbreeding process was smaller in more remote areas, the extinction of the subspecies is considered inevitable. Some researchers believe that these crossbreds should be considered true dingoes when their anatomy and behavior do not differ from the rest of the pure dingoes.

While dingo protection is in place in Federal National Parks, World Heritage Areas, Aboriginal Reserves and the Australian Capital Territory, dingoes are classified as a pest in other areas. The absence of the same protection throughout the country implies that in many areas they are hunted with traps or poisoned, which has caused, together with hybridization with domestic dogs, that the classification of the taxon rose from " Low risk" to "Vulnerable" in 2004 by the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources).

Dingoes as pets

The dingo is a subspecies of wolf that is easier to tame than wolves in the northern hemisphere. Dingo pups are only available in Australia and it is illegal to export them. Puppies can cost from A$500 to A$1,000. Although dingoes are healthier than most domestic dogs and do not have the characteristic 'dog smell', they can become very troublesome during their annual cycle. of reproduction or heat. The males, in particular, will try to escape to find a mate. Some Aborigines prevent the escape of an adopted dingo with the aggressive practice of breaking its front legs.

Domestic dingo begins to become common in Australia. In that condition, they keep their groaning habit.

History

Dingoes were brought from Southeast Asia to Australia and other parts of the Pacific by nomads traveling through Southeast Asia 5,000 years ago. 3,500-4,500 years ago dingoes reached Australia and nearby islands, except for Tasmania. Originally, Aboriginal Australians kept dingoes for food in case of food shortages.

The arrival of dingoes in Australia is considered one of the possible causes of the extinction of the thylacine. Fossil evidence and Aboriginal paintings indicate that thylacines were found all over Australia, and there was a sudden disappearance around 3,000 years ago. The interaction of the two species lasted about 500 years, which some experts say would be long enough for a significant impact on thylacine populations, either through competition for food or through disease transmission. Some doubt the impact of the dingo, suggesting that the two species might not have been in direct competition with each other. The dingo is primarily a daytime hunter, and the thylacine is thought to have hunted primarily at night. In addition, the thylacine was larger, giving it an advantage in one-on-one combat.

Dingoes were not discovered by European settlers until the 17th century, initially mistaking them for abandoned or feral dogs. Captain William Dampier, who spoke of wild dogs in 1699, was the first European to officially see the dingo. Dingo populations flourished with the introduction of the European sheep and European rabbit to Australia.