(Wild dogs travel more than 12 miles per day on average.) In addition to snares, poachers sometimes poison water sources with cyanide. Wild dogs are particularly vulnerable to injury or death by snares because they cover a lot of ground while hunting. Poachers commonly use wire snares, which kill large animals indiscriminately. With limited employment opportunities and sporadic rainfall that negatively impacts farming yields, bush meat hunting has gained popularity over the past several years as a means to make a living. The most pressing threat to the wild dogs’ survival, however, is poaching. As more people settle around Hwange, the African wild dog population faces increasing pressure in the form of habitat fragmentation and human-wildlife conflict. About 160 wild dogs-also known as “painted dogs” for their colorful, patchy coats - live in Hwange and its environs. She is passionate about sustainable development on the African continent.įamous for its sizeable populations of elephants and large carnivores, Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe is also home to one of the most elusive predators on the continent: the endangered African wild dog. She studied abroad in Kenya and interned with a grassroots NGO in Nairobi. Micaela is the Program Design Officer at African Wildlife Foundation and a previous AWF intern.
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