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This digital document is a journal article from Biological Conservation, published by Elsevier in . The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Description:
Most large mammalian carnivores are in global decline, principally due to conflict with livestock farmers. Because endangered African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) range widely, often beyond the boundaries of protected areas, they may be particularly exposed to lethal control by farmers, even where nominally protected by reserves. Hence, effectively conserving wild dogs demands resolution of their conflicts with farmers. We investigated livestock depredation by African wild dogs living outside protected areas in northern Kenya. Scat analysis confirmed the distribution of depredation events reported by local farmers, indicating that farmer reports - collated by local Community Liaison Officers - gave a reasonably good index of the true pattern of depredation. Although livestock were abundant throughout the study area, depredation was exceedingly uncommon (approximately one attack per 1000km^2 per year) and the costs of tolerating wild dogs were very low (US $3.40/wilddog/year) where wild prey remained, even at low densities. However, where wild prey were seriously depleted, wild dogs killed livestock repeatedly, and the cost of sustaining them rose to US $389/wilddog/year. Hence, although wild dogs had a negligible economic impact in the region, their impact was locally severe. Conservation activities for wild dogs are most likely to be successful if targeted at areas where wild prey remain, and where traditional herding practices have been retained. ... Read more

Product Description
Arguable the most successful hunter in Africa, the African wild dog, ironically finds itself on the brink of extinction. Part of the Canidae family, and sharing a general similarity with the various canids worldwide, the African wild dog differs fundamentally from other canids: it belongs to the genus, Lycaon, which formed a new branch on the family tree some 3 million years back and subsequently evolved independently. Today it is the only survivor of this unique line and, because of its genetic difference, is unable to interbreed with any of its canid relatives or even with the domestic dog. Previously found in diverse habitats across the continent, it has tragically disappeared from much of its former range. Today there are only an estimated 3,000 to 5,500 wild dogs left in the whole of Africa, a mere 500 of which occur in South Africa.

In spite of, or perhaps because of, the elusive nature of the wild dogs and their limited population numbers, Roger and Pat have produced their best book yet. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

An outstanding compendium of color photographs
Once a common feature of the African landscape, the African wild dog, a species that is more than three million years old, is now in very real danger of extinction. Because of its unique genetic make-up, the African wild dog is unable to crossbreed with any other canine species. The collaborative project of South African photographers Roger and pat De La Harpe, "In Search of the African Wild Dog" is a superbly illustrated, 160-page, coffee table book showcasing the African wild dog in its native habitat. This outstanding compendium of color photographs reveals the environment of this unique animal in five informative geographically based sections: South Africa; North West Bushveld; Zululand; Limpopo Valley; and the Greater Kruger national Park. There overall numbers having dwindled down from millions to an estimated three to four thousand (with only five hundred of that number in South Africa), "In Search of the African Wild Dog" is a very highly recommended addition to personal, academic, and community library Endangered Wildlife reference collections and supplemental reading lists.

So Interesting
In Search of the African Wild Dog by Roger and Pat de la Harpe
Roger and Pat de la Harpe's excellent book of one of the little known species in the world, which is on the brink of extinction, is not only a very informative and provocative read but also a book with exceptional insight into preservation and conservation on this planet. In Search of the African Wild Dog is a combination of wonderful photography coupled with well researched and well thought out text. The species of the African Wild Dog is hanging on to existence in the Northeastern area of South Africa, most prominently in the area of Kruger National Park. The animal has a bit of a hyena look to it because of the ears and some of the head features, but is clearly very different when the total body is viewed. My feeling from seeing the de la Harpe's pictures was that it was a large jackal with hyena ears. Their strange yellow, black, and white blotching of color is very unique. I had never known of the existence of these animals, which are known to be possibly the most successful hunters in Africa by those that have studied them and attempted to help preserve them. From the accounts given in the book, the reader finds this species to be one of the more interesting African animals. The methods of hunting as well as such things as their use of an old aardvark hole as a den to raise the pups and returning year after year to the same place are among the many features brought out by the authors. The book details the history of human encounters with the African Wild Dog from the early 1800s. It also goes into great detail about the present efforts to preserve the species as well as the efforts to reintroduce the animals back into areas where they once roamed by the group called The Wild Dog Advisory Group, which was formed with the purpose of establishing several small populations of wild dogs in different locations. The de la Harpe's give the reader in depth accounts of this with description combined with unbelievable photographs. First seeing the cover of this book might lead one to think it to be only a coffee table photo book, but it is what I believe to be a captivating read in understanding life on this planet and the need for preservation of any of the species that are in danger of extinction. (reviewed by bill neely for [...]) ... Read more

Product Description
With only 5,000 surviving, the African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) is one of the world's most endangered large carnivores--and one of the most remarkable. This comprehensive portrait of wild dogs incorporates previously scattered information with important new findings from a six-year study in Tanzania's Selous Game Reserve, Africa's largest protected area.

The book emphasizes ecology, concentrating on why wild dogs fare poorly in protected areas that maintain healthy populations of lions, hyenas, or other top carnivores. In addition to conservation issues, it covers fascinating aspects of wild dog behavior and social evolution. The Creels use demographic, behavioral, endocrine, and genetic approaches to examine how and why nonbreeding pack mates help breeding pairs raise their litters. They also present the largest data set ever collected on mammalian predator-prey interactions and the evolution of cooperative hunting, allowing them to account for wild dogs' prowess as hunters.

By using a large sample size and sophisticated analytical tools, the authors step well beyond previous research. Their results include some surprises that will cause even specialists to rethink certain propositions, such as the idea that wild dogs are unusually vulnerable to infectious disease. Several findings apply broadly to the management of other protected areas.

Of clear appeal to ecologists studying predation and cooperation in any population, this book collects and expands a cache of information useful to anyone studying conservation as well as to amateurs intrigued by the once-maligned but extraordinary wild dog. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

The african wild dog:Behavior, Ecology and conservation
I ordered this book for my husband as a gift, because we plan to go to Africa and he loves the wild dogs.The book is too technicle and is more appropriate forresearch. I would not recommended this book for pleasure reading.

Excellent resource
This book is everything it claims to be. It is a thorough, interesting and very readable (though scientific) resource on the African Wild Dog and I would recommend it to anyone dealing with the species, or wanting to know more about the dogs and how they are studied.

This is THE book on wild dogs.
That's not just a compliment. It's a literal fact. There is no other book dedicated to wild dogs. Not in print. Probably not at all. And if we're to be "stuck" with just one publication, it is sheer pleasure to be stuck with this one. Highly readable, engaging, informative... robust science, excellent documentation, interesting and mind-expanding explanations and statistics... There's no other book out there, but even if there were, it would be hard pressed to meet this publication for quality and readability. Five stars. Worth every penny. ... Read more

Product Description
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.Amazon.com Review
For millennia, Lycaon pictus, the wild dog, roamed thesavannas of sub-Saharan Africa. A highly social scavenger, much likethe wolf of the Northern Hemisphere, the wild dog served an essentialfunction in the grasslands ecosystem, culling sick and injuredungulates from once-vast herds. With the advent of large-scale farmingand livestock production, however, the wild dog was seen as a threatto progress and was hunted out. Only some 5,000 individuals survivetoday, making Lycaon pictus Africa's most endangeredcarnivore. This heavily illustrated look at the life of the wild dogmakes a well-reasoned argument for its preservation. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Wonderful, Wonderful, Wonderful
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.

This is a great book!!
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 luckwhen I found it.It is an excellent, coffee-table-type book with lots ofbeautiful pictures that you would like even if you were not speciallyinterested in wild dogs.You will be surprised at how similar the dogslook in the pictures to your own dog.

A fascinating look at the ecology of the African wild dog
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 safariin Botswana in September of 1998.Being a wolf enthusiast, I was veryinterested in the similarities and differences between the American greywolf and the African wild dog.This book was in the library of each safaricamp I stayed in so I had the pleasure of studying about the wild dogswhile in their native habitat.As you'll learn from this book, wild dogsare extremely social, even more so than grey wolves, and very efficient,successful predators.

The photographs in this book are fantastic andthe text is well written, well organized, and aimed at the general publicrather than the scientific community.

The author continues his Africanwild dog research in Botswana.The fate of these fascinating predators isvery precarious due to their small population and the relentlesspersecution by people, similar to that experienced by the grey wolf inAmerica earlier this century.

A well-researched, fascinating look at the African wild dog
This is an excellent treatment of the ecology, behavior and endangered status of the African wild dog (Lycaon pictus).For the past several years, the authors have studied African wild dogs in one of their last remaining strongholds, the Okavango Delta in Botswana.

The well-written text and superb photography provide important insight into the natural history and the current plight of African wild dogs. This species has been maligned and persecuted by humans, partly because of unfortunate myths about them.The authors address and dispel these myths, they examine the causes of the drastic decline in African wild dog numbers, and they discuss possible approaches to save this endangered species.

... Read more

Product Description

Over the last 30 years the African wild dog population has declined dramatically. Dogs have disappeared from 25 of the 39 countries where they were previously found, and only 6 populations are believed to number more than 100. Today it is believed that only between 3,000-5,500 dogs remain in 600-1,000 packs with most to be found in eastern and southern Africa. The dramatic reduction in their population is attributed to a number of factors including human population growth and activities, deterioration of habitat, and contact with domestic dogs and their diseases.

This Action Plan explores some of the reasons behind their disappearance and provides a number of proposed solutions split into 3 priority areas, ranging from habitat management and conservation to monitoring domestic dogs. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (16)

book review
Smooth transaction.Seller's cool.I'm about half way through the book.It's very good.It not only explains about wolf behavior, but it gives in depth info about many of the wolves, individually.Even though the wolves are identified by number, you feel like to got to know the first wolves that were reintroduced into Yellowstone.I would recommend.

Bush is trying to slaughter the wolves again!!!
they won't be there very long if Bush has his way.he's imposing a new rule to slaughter all the wolves in the park because of a few disgruntled ranchers.

check it out for all the info: http://www.nrdcactionfund.org/campaigns/wildlife/save-endangered-gray-wolves.html

Recommended
This is a well written combination of scientific discussion of the effect of first 10 years of the return of wolves to the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and amazing stories of individual wolves. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the effect of restoring the full compliment of species to an ecosystem. It is easily approchable by the average non-scientist reader.

A terrific book about wolves & wildlife biology
I have read over 40 books about wolves over 35 years and this one stands out as one of the very best.

The book has two main themes -- the life histories of individual wolves brought to Yellowstone and their packs, and what wildlife biologists actually do to accomplish a successful introduction and gather the histories of these wolves. Both these themes are covered very well in exceptionally graceful writing.

Missing intentionally is a blow by blow history of the political controversy surrounding the introduction, and I am glad for that -- the focus remains on the wolves and how they deal with the challenges they face. The political history has been covered in other books and is a fairly depressing story of people shouting at each other.

The authors ability to describe in remarkable detail on the histories of individual wolves and their packs was aided enormously by the radio collars the placed on select individuals and the high visibility of the wolves in Yellowstone. The picture that emerges is of an enormously rich, complex, dynamic and tough world. Surviving is a constant challenge for a wolf, even in this prey-rich environment, and few wolves make it past 4-5 years old, much younger than the lives of wolves in captivity.

Their is so much information about their behavior that the wolves emerge as distinct individuals with dramatically different personalities and styles. Packs develop unique cultures (e.g. hunting bison). The static alpha male - alpha female hierarchy so often described in other books turns out to be far more variable with much greater roles in some packs for the alpha female and non-alpha wolves.

The authors note how frequently the wolves' behavior continues to them, particularly social behavior. There are far more ways to organize and "run" a wolf pack then previously thought, and the complexity of the dynamics described resembles human social interactions to a remarkable degree.

There is a lot that can be learned even by well-read wolf enthusiasts from reading this book. Yet, for those who are just beginning to read about wolves, this book is a superb introduction to these animals that get more fascinating the more we know about them.

Those who enjoyed the insight into the life of a wildlife biologist in this book would no doubt also enjoy Craig Packer's Into Africa, an account of his work with the social histories of African lion prides.

Great Book about the wolves of Yellowstone N.P.
This has to be the best book I have read in years about the Yellowstone National Park's reintroduction of the wolves. Entertaining and very educational. I highly advise anyone that would like to further there education on the history of the Yellowstone Wolves to read this book. It was pure enjoyment. ... Read more

Product Description
73pp. 4to - over 9 3/4" - 12" tall. ... Read more

Product Description
Realistic, fun stickers include 51 species from butterflies, turtles and birds to snails, endangered cats and insects.Children can use the self-adhesive stickers to:

• Draw scenes and bring it to life with stickers.
• Collect them! Trade them!
• Use as party favors
• Decorate letters, envelopes, posters, and art projects.
• Use with the book "Discovering Endangered Species." ... Read more

Product Description
Complete 4 volume set published 1990-1992: Vol I - Executive Summaries, 38pp; Vol II (spiral bound PB) - Research and Analysis, 574pp; Vol III - Executive Summaries, 63pp; Vol IV - Research and Analysis, 749pp. ... Read more

Product Description
After forming an intense bond with Natasha, a wolf cub she raised as part of her undergraduate research, Renée Askins was inspired to found the Wolf Fund. As head of this grassroots organization, she made it her goal to restore wolves to Yellowstone National Park, where they had been eradicated by man over seventy years before. Here, Askins recounts her courageous fifteen-year campaign, wrangling along the way with Western ranchers and their political allies in Washington, enduring death threats, and surviving the anguish of illegal wolf slayings to ensure that her dream of restoring Yellowstone’s ecological balance would one day be realized. Told in powerful, first-person narrative, Shadow Mountain is the awe-inspiring story of her mission and her impassioned meditation on our connection to the wild.


From the Trade Paperback edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

Loved Shadow Mountain!
Renee Askins has written a beautiful memoir.Her tale ranges from the fields and forests of Northern Michigan to the rugged Yellowstone outback, describing in attractive, forthright prose how wildlife, and ultimately wolves, helped shape identity and meaning in her life.The account of the complex cultural and political fight to reintroduce wolves to Yellowstone is worth the purchase price, but the book offers much more.An important perspective on our connection to our environment, the importance of honoring that connections, and the perils of continuing to disregard it.

Askins if my hero
I loved this story, everything from the depth of the details to the devotion and dedication this woman took for something she loved. I, too, love the mystic and wildness of wolves. She wrote about wildness in everyone, that maybe true. She is such an inspiring woman and she never gave up.

Great read
I truly enjoyed this book. The only reason it is not getting 5 stars is b/c I felt a litle misled by the synopsis on the back. I thought the entire book would be about wolves and Yellowstone. The book was about these topics but also much more about the author's relationships with her animals. As an animal lover, I really enjoyed these parts of the book. And as a married person without children, I can relate when she writes about people not treating pets as family or the lack of sensitivity towards animals (as opposed to humans).

I bought this book after visiting Yellowstone recently and it was a good follow-up to my trip. How could anyone not have been excited about the reintroduction of wolves into the park. What an amazing story.

Flowery Garbage
Someone should ban this woman from ever using a simile or a metaphor again.At least she could refrain from using 3 or 4 of them in every sentence.I like wolves and from reading the back of the book it sounded interesting.I wish that I would have read the first chapter before buying this book.It might have some decent imformation in it, but I just about threw up from trying to get past the first chapter.

current favorite
This is an excellent book and has much to offer for nature /animal lovers, how difficult such a project is, to combat many opposing forces. It has a measure of spirituality, romance and animal nature. ... Read more

Product Description
"Excerpt from the book..."

When God made the world
He planted the flowers and
the grass and the trees to
make things beautiful to
look upon; He swung the sun and
the moon and the stars in the sky
to make things bright
... Read more

Product Description
A gripping story of wonder, frustrations, humor, and everyday hard work of field biologists as they track the recovery of wild wolves.

It was 1978, and there had been no resident timber wolves in Wisconsin for twenty years. Still, packs were active in neighboring Minnesota, and there was the occasional rumor from Wisconsin's northwestern counties of wolf sign or sightings. Had wolves returned on their own to Wisconsin? Richard Thiel, then a college student with a passion for wolves, was determined to find out.

Thus begins Keepers of the Wolves, Thiel's tale of his ten years at the center of efforts to track and protect the recovery of wolves in Northern Wisconsin. From his early efforts as a student enthusiast to his departure in 1989 from the post of wolf biologist for the Department of Natural Resources, Thiel conveys the wonder, frustrations, humor, and everyday hard work of field biologists, as well as the politics and public relations pitfalls that so often accompany their profession.

We share in the excitement as Thiel and his colleagues find wolf tracks in the snow, howl in the forest night and are answered back, learn to safely trap wolves to attach radio collars, and track the packs' ranges by air from a cramped Piper Cub. We follow the stories of individual wolves and their packs as pups are born and die, wolves are shot by accident and by intent, ravages of canine parvovirus and hard winters take their toll, and young adults move on to new ranges. Believing he had left his beloved wolves behind, Thiel takes a new job as an environmental educator in central Wisconsin, but soon wolves follow. By 1999, there were an estimated 200 timber wolves in 54 packs in Wisconsin. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Enthralling book about wilderness returning to your backdoor
I grew up in Wisconsin and can relate to Richard P Thiel's accurate and colorful descriptions of northern and central Wisconsin landscape.However, his experiences go far beyond those of most others, helped by being able to track wolves by light aircraft and radio telemetry thus getting a bird's eye view of the scene.A good example of the Scientific Method on the hoof, so to speak. The book does not glamorize the profession of wildlife biology; it tells it like it is, including the governmental bureaucracy, physical hardships, bad weather, and long hours, occasionally punctuated with incredible encounters with the wolves that refused to be excluded from Wisconsin. The book teaches people what to expect when wolves share your living space.And what a great ending ... it brings the reader right up to date and sets the stage for proper management decisions in the future.A great humorous book which will entertain you as well as educate. I couldn't put it down.

Recommended for Wisconsin environmental issues reading lists
Keepers Of The Wolves: The Early Years Of Wolf Recovery In Wisconsin by Richard Thiel (coordinator of the Wisconsin Department of natural Resources Sandhill Outdoor Skills Center, Babcock, Wisconsin) is the true and fascinating story of the restoration of wild wolves to Wisconsin Forest, from 1978 when they had been gone for twenty years to the present day with an estimated 200 timber wolves in 54 packs. Black-and-white line drawings illustrate a story of political controversies, environmental struggles, and the enduring strength of the wolf itself. A conservationist success story, Keepers Of The Wolves is especially recommended for Wisconsin environmental issues reading lists and wildlife restoration studies reference collections.

The respect for life
Good friends presented us this book as a Christmas gift, knowing that we are very interested in all forms of appearance of the nature, inanimate and alive.
It is of great interest for us since just in this years the wolves also return to the forests of our Eastgerman country.
It is wonderful written, understandable also for the laymen and rich in nice figures.
Most important for us is however, that this book is written by a man who obviously feels responsible for the life on our so endangered earth, who understand that human life is tightly connected with all the other appearances of life and that the good evolution of one kind of life is the necessary precondition for the healthy existence of all another creatures.
Men like Richard Thiel give us the hopethat life has a chance to survive at our planet.

Thiel's wolves a winner again.
'Keepers of the wolves' is Richard P Thiel's follow up to his
wonderful 1993 publication 'The Timber Wolf in Wisconsin.'
Once again the author's informative and personal writing style
makes this very fine book an essential work for any Wolf supporter interested in the more complex aspects of the Wolf recovery effort in the United states today.

Life Lessons to Learn
This book is a labor of love and committment,the author rocks and provides insights into what it takes to assure that today's actions ensure one's goals/ideals, i.e. wolf recovery, survive into the next generation.The illustrations are sweet and the book is very easy to read and enjoyable. ... Read more