How common are dhole exhibits in the UK and Europe in general? To my knowledge there aren't any dhole exhibits in the US. San Diego has (or had?) a pack, but like their tuataras they keep them off display. This is an animal that I would really like to see.
Thanks for the info Javan Rhino. It looks like the chances of seeing one are much better than in Europe than in North America. 42 zoos, wow. I imagine this makes it one of the more common canids displayed then? The main canid exhibits over here seem to be wolves, African wild dogs, fennec foxes, and a sprinkling of other fox species.
Thanks for the info Javan Rhino. It looks like the chances of seeing one are much better than in Europe than in North America. 42 zoos, wow. I imagine this makes it one of the more common canids displayed then? The main canid exhibits over here seem to be wolves, African wild dogs, fennec foxes, and a sprinkling of other fox species.
Not all that common compared to others, I think? According to Zootierliste, the numbers for some other zoos holding canids are as follows...
African wild dog - 8 in Germany, 48 elsewhere in Europe
Arctiv Fox - 32 in Germany, 39 elsewhere in Europe
Eurasian Wolf - 61 in Germany, 117 elsewhere
Fennec Fox - 10 in Germany, 50 elsewhere
Red Fox - 66 in Germany, 47 elsewhere
Maned Wolf - 10 in Germany, 62 elsewhere
Raccoon Dog - 37 in Germany, 81 elsewhere
And bearing in mind those listings don't count various subspecies in the same count, the actual numbers will doubtless be higher - for instance as well as various subspecies of Wolf such as the Eurasian mentioned above, Zootierliste mentions a further 52 non-ssp Canis lupus.
Plus a higher-than-usual proportion of the Dhole-keeping zoos are out on the fringes of Europe in Russia (19 out of 42 - one of which is Novosibirsk!) so aren't really a feature of the European zoo 'scene'.
How common are dhole exhibits in the UK and Europe in general? To my knowledge there aren't any dhole exhibits in the US. San Diego has (or had?) a pack, but like their tuataras they keep them off display. This is an animal that I would really like to see.
The Wilds, a 10,000 acre conservation center here in Ohio, currently exhibits a pair of Dholes (I believe there are still only two) in their Medium-Sized Carnivore Center. They are planning on bringing in two additional females next year to encourage breeding.
David, you would be well advised to visit Howletts if you want to see dhole in the UK.
They have a decent sized pack, and Bekesbourne (near Canterbury - worth visiting if you have even a cursory interest in English history) is a lot easier to get to from London than Galloway. Twycross only has a pair; having not visited Port Lympne since the place was pulled apart this spring I have no idea about this species' status there.
