Dogs

There are many species of dogs and relatives.

Cape Hunting Dog (Lycaon pictus)

Head Close-up Hunting Dog

Hunting dogs are very rare in the Serengeti. We heard that they are more common in the south.

When we arrived in Selous the people running the camp asked us what we wanted to see and we told them we were hoping for dogs. They were not very optimistic as they had not seen dogs in three weeks. At the end of our first day we were driving back to the camp and there were seven dogs right on the road! The next day we saw the same pack, only this time there were nine dogs.

Bat-eared Fox (Otocyon megalotis)

At Play Close-up

The first time we saw bat-eared foxes they quickly ran into their den. We decided to drive around for a while and come back later to see if they had come out. They had, but the were still were far away in tall grass. However, on the other side of the road there was a mother cheetah with three cubs. So we watched them instead.

We later saw several more groups of foxes which were closer and less shy. 

Spotted Hyena (Crocuta crocuta)

In Grass Covered with mud With wildebeest

Hyenas like to roll in mud. We saw them in the Serengeti and in Selous. Although they are scavengers they also hunt.

A pair of hyenas killed a wildebeest. The vultures wanted to eat too. 

Golden Jackal (Canis aureus)

Posing for us

We saw these jackals in the Serengeti and in Ngorongoro Crater.

With antelope

This one in Ngorongoro had killed a small antelope. It buried half of it and took the rest into tall grass, probably to feed the family. 

Black-backed Jackal (Canis mesomelas)

Standing In Serengeti

We saw a few of these in the Serengeti. Four of them were near the road and entertained us for a while. 

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Last modified 5 November 2019