Dhole

Dhole Temporal range: Middle Pleistocene – Recent 0.78–0 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Conservation status
Endangered  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Family:	Canidae
Subfamily:	Caninae
Tribe:	Canini
Genus:	Cuon Hodgson, 1838
Species:	C. alpinus
Binomial name
Cuon alpinus (Pallas, 1811)
Subspecies
C. a. adjustus C. a. alpinus C. a. fumosus † C. a. hesperius C. a. laniger C. a. lepturus C. a. sumatrensis † C. a. antiquus † C. a. caucasicus † C. a. europaeus
dhole range
Synonyms
Canis alpinus

The dhole (/doʊl/ dohl;^[2][3] Cuon alpinus) is a canid native to South, East and Southeast Asia. It is anatomically distinguished from members of the genus Canis in several aspects: its skull is convex rather than concave in profile, it lacks a third lower molar and the upper molars possess only a single cusp as opposed to between two and four. During the Pleistocene, the dhole ranged throughout Asia, with its range also extending into Europe (with a single record also reported from North America) but became restricted to its historical range 12,000–18,000 years ago. It is now extinct in Central Asia, parts of Southeast Asia, and possibly the Korean peninsula and Russia.

Genetic evidence indicates that the dhole was the result of reticulate evolution, emerging from the hybridization between a species closely related to genus Canis and from a lineage closely related to the African wild dog (Lycaon pictus).

The dhole is a highly social animal, living in large clans without rigid dominance hierarchies and containing multiple breeding females. Such clans usually consist of about 12 individuals, but groups of over 40 are known. It is a diurnal pack hunter which preferentially targets large and medium-sized ungulates. In tropical forests, the dhole competes with the tiger (Panthera tigris) and the leopard (Panthera pardus), targeting somewhat different prey species, but still with substantial dietary overlap.

It is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, as populations are decreasing and estimated to comprise fewer than 2,500 mature individuals. Factors contributing to this decline include habitat loss, loss of prey, competition with other species, persecution due to livestock predation, and disease transfer from domestic dogs.