| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Canidae |
| Size: | Length: 34 to 48 inches (86 to 122 cm) |
| Weight: | 20 to 53 pounds (9 to 24 kg) |
| Diet: | Rodents, rabbits and other mammals, carrion, insects and vegetation |
| Distribution: | Australia |
| Young: | 4 to 8 pups, once per year |
| Animal Predators: | Unknown |
| IUCN Status: | No special status |
| Terms: | Young: Pup |
| Lifespan: | Up to 20 years |
· Dingoes will wade in water but do not like to swim.
·
Some people
believe dingoes evolved from the Indian Wolf about 6000
years ago.
· Wild dingoes can yelp and howl, but do not bark.
· Unlike domestic dogs, which breed twice a year, dingoes can only breed once per year.
· It is believed that the dingo is the ancestor of all domestic dog breeds.
· The dingo is Australia’s largest living terrestrial carnivore.
· Through the ages, Aborigines have enjoyed dingoes for companionship and hunting purposes.
Dingoes are medium-sized dogs with yellow or orange eyes and erect ears. Their fur is usually coloured yellow-ginger, but may also include black and white. Most wild dingoes have white fur on their feet.
They live in forests, grasslands, and sometimes deserts, as long as there is access to drinking water. Although the origin of where dingoes originated is a topic of debate, they now exist solely in Australia.
Dingoes eat a variety of food, including rodents, carrion, insects and vegetation. At one time they hunted kangaroos, but now stick to smaller game such as rabbits and sometimes sheep, making them unpopular with farmers.
Research shows dingoes are monogamous, choosing a mate when they reach maturity and forming a lifetime bond. Mating season is from March to May and pups are born two months after conception, between June and August, in their parents’ den. Both the male and female take part in raising the pups. They are weaned at two months and from two to four months they eat regurgitated food from their mother. By four months they begin learning to hunt and will eat solid food. The pups and their parents have close relationships and the youngsters stay with them for up to three years.
Dingoes usually hunt alone at night. They live in small family groups of a male, a female and their offspring. Dingoes share their ranges with other dingoes and are fairly social, sometimes joining together to hunt down large prey. They are intelligent and affectionate animals.
Dingoes are not considered a conservation concern.
http://www.bioc.unsw.edu.au/anw/dingo.html
http://www.wwwins.net.au/dingofarm/001.html
http://www.anhs.com.au/dingo.htm
http://www.lostkingdoms.com/facts/factsheet58.htm
http://www.dingosanctuary.org/dingo.html
http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/canis/c._lupus_dingo$narrative.html