Where Are The Dingos?

snowleopard

snowleopard

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According to ISIS there are only 5 dingos in 5 zoos in North America, and only a handful more worldwide outside of Australia. It is staggering to see the amazing diversity of Aussie wildlife in zoos within Australia, but outside of that glorious nation there are usually nothing more than lorikeets, wallabies, kangaroos, emus and the occasional koala at most major zoos. There are exceptions to the rule, but the lack of sustained breeding success in the past has hampered any opportunity to advance the expansion of Aussie species worldwide. I would have thought that dingos were easier to handle and breed in comparison to echidnas, tasmanian devils, platypus, brolgas, tiger quolls, and the multitude of other unique "down under" critters.
 
oh my,
Iconic Australian Wildlife is very populous over here, most if not every zoo in Australia have a wide range of australian wildlife on display there are also quite a decent number of widlife parks scatter across here.

but I'm not sure how many zoos keep dingos in australia. I think healsville sanctuary how some but I don't know how many.
 
I know people that keep and breed dingoes just like your average dog so it is a suprise to find out that there are so few around the world.
 
After staying in Australia and visiting a number of zoos and wildlife parks there, it is my experience that one will never look upon Australian animals in zoos abroad with the same eyes again. Already I have started yawning at the sight of such splendid animals as koalas, and that is said with all due respect for koalas. The new Australia section in Singapore Zoo was the only area that didn't fascinate me one bit, but that was probably because I was coming from Australia when I visited it :)
 
Is there anywhere in Europe (zoo or private) breeding them? it would be a sin to see them die out!
 
Great point Baldur! Aussie zoos tend to have the same exact list of animals at each location, and the numerous wildlife parks (while excellent) also have mainly the same species. Mind you, those particular animals are usually found nowhere else outside of that massive island.:)
 
As to Dingos in Europe, you can (or could until very recently at least) see them here and there in Poland. Only been to two Polish zoos and neither one had them. But not sure if they have been breeding there.
 
I would love to see Dingoes in North American zoos! I'd love it if it Toronto was able to get some; with their numbers dwindling due to persecution and interbreeding with domestic dogs, it'd be timely.
 
The zoos I know that exhibit dingos are Miami Metrozoo, Cleveland Zoo and Kansas City Zoo.
 
I'd love to see dingos, but where I live (UK), I doubt I ever will unless I go to Australia :( I can't see why we can't have dingos-we've got wallabies, cockatoos, now where's our Australian canid :confused:
 
That is an interesting question that snowleopard poses. Surely they were available for import at one time, and surely they breed regularly. So, why aren't there many. Would you suppose it could be due to low institutional interest? Would many people view them as "just dogs"? Wolves don't exactly seem to be all that popular of a zoo display themselves, could that be related to the issue?
 
Whats the difference between dingos and singing dogs? Cleveland, Miami and Lowry park call them new guinea sing dogs but I have been to a private zoo that had said dingos but they looked similar.
 
Dingo and NG singing dogs are both ancient "Pariah dogs" (Canis lupus dingo) they are both very similar however NGSD are smaller with a wider face and shorter muzzel. They have been reported to climb like a cat, this lends itself to the terrain they hunt in; rocky & steep. Dingo are taller and are generally uniform "yellow" in colour (this can vary though). NGSD can have varied cream markings on their bodys including a stripe between their eyes. Neither bark as such like a domestic dog and their canines are much bigger. NGSD will howl like wolves but vary the pitch, hence where they get their name.

Where and when did the last Dingo in the UK die does anybody know?
 
[QUOTEThey have been reported to climb like a cat...[/QUOTE]

Thanx for the info. One of the NGSD at Miami climbed onto a low branch of tree in its exhibit when I visited.
 
Dingo is one of that species which really used to be more common in zoos. I remember the old guide of Czech and Slovak zoological gardens and if I remember well dingo was quite common in Czech zoos.
According to www.Zootierliste.de 19 european institution keep dingos
www.Zootierliste.de
and 4 singing dogs
www.Zootierliste.de

I thing the problem with dingo is they are not attractive as may be arctic volwes or Lycaon. And the second reason...more important... dingo is not wild species of dog...it is just a domestic dog which escaped to the wildlife and is hunting original australian marsupials and is common. So only small parks or zoos with interests to domestic animals are still interested to keep them (just Opole and Tierpark Berlin are bigger zoos from the list). Imagine if we were discussing how many zoos around the world keep Afghand hound, Caucasian Shepherd dog or Camargue horse and Mustang (on the other hand... they are interested in domestic lamas and camels).

The situation with NGSD is little different. They are extremely endengared. I think nobody has seen it for few years in NG. We dont know anything about his behaviour in wildlife.
 
Meaghan Edwards said:
I would love to see Dingoes in North American zoos! I'd love it if it Toronto was able to get some; with their numbers dwindling due to persecution and interbreeding with domestic dogs, it'd be timely.
Click to expand...

Well, we were able to acquire asiatic wild dogs back in 1998 and we had two successful litters so I'm sure we'd have at least a chance at getting Dingos
 
Cockroach makes an excellent point. Dingos are feral animals, NOT wild animals. They are largely considered to be the cause of the extinction of the thylacine on mainland Australia. Although they tell an interesting story about invasive species, and may be worth exhibiting for that reason, they really serve no conservation purpose.

New Guinea Singing Dogs are basically a subspecies (or perhaps "breed" is the more appropriate term) of Dingo. I have seen these very recently at San Diego Zoo and Wildlife World Zoo/Aquarium, both here in the southwest U.S.
 
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