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!!   May 2, 1999
 9 out of 11 found this review helpful

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 luck when I found it. It is an excellent, coffee-table-type book with lots of beautiful pictures that you would like even if you were not specially interested in wild dogs. You will be surprised at how similar the dogs look in the pictures to your own dog.


A fascinating look at the ecology of the African wild dog   October 30, 1998
 8 out of 9 found this review helpful

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 safari in Botswana in September of 1998. Being a wolf enthusiast, I was very interested in the similarities and differences between the American grey wolf and the African wild dog. This book was in the library of each safari camp I stayed in so I had the pleasure of studying about the wild dogs while in their native habitat. As you'll learn from this book, wild dogs are extremely social, even more so than grey wolves, and very efficient, successful predators.

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

The author continues his African wild dog research in Botswana. The fate of these fascinating predators is very precarious due to their small population and the relentless persecution by people, similar to that experienced by the grey wolf in America earlier this century.


A well-researched, fascinating look at the African wild dog   March 29, 1998
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.