There are few more exciting sightings at Londolozi than when a pack of wild dogs crosses into our reserve. The sheer excitement of any ranger finding them is hard to contain as it gets called in on the radio. This is precisely what happened to me about a month ago but this time it came with an additional twist and one that will most likely linger in my memory forever. I am going to use this as the first part of a two-part story.
Few things are more exciting than coming around the corner and seeing wild dogs trotting towards the vehicle.
Let’s first start with a brief history of the Othawa Pack
The Othawa Pack and the Flat Rock Male
In November 2020 the Othawa Pack was made up of 13 adults. Tracker Advice Ngwenya and I were tracking the pack in the thick riverine area of the Sand River west of our camps. It was impossible to get a vehicle into the river so we wanted to find them and see which way they would go once they started to get moving as they always do close to sunset. We managed to find them resting in the cool river sand next to a small pool of water.
A pack of wild dogs stopped to asses the best place to cross the Sand River
As we watched them through the wild date palms we heard an almighty crash of something powering through the palms, out of nowhere the Flat Rock Male charged straight at them. He jumped into the shallow pool of water scattering the wild dogs in all directions. He managed to isolate two and they ran right past where Advice and I were hiding in the bushes. We took a few steps around the bushes only to see the Flat Rock Male standing in front of us with one of the adults clasped between his powerful jaws. At this point, the rest of the pack had regrouped and ran to the aid of the victim. The Flat Rock Male quickly ascended a sausage tree carrying his prey. The pack was down to 12.
It would be a few months before the Othawa Pack ventured back onto Londolozi
Failed Litters and Loss of Adults
Wild dogs have a denning season during the winter months of the year. Specific packs tend to reuse den sites that they have used in previous years and in 2021 and 2022 this was the case. The den was just wast of our boundary in the northern stretches of Londolozi so we were not able to get to the den to view the pack and their pups, however, we would have occasional sightings of the adults hunting before returning to feed their pups at the den.
Four tiny wild dog pups peek out of their den waiting for their mother to return
Unfortunately, their litter in 2021 was lost to a pride of lions that came across their den and in 2022 only a very small litter was born of which none survived past a few months. Later in 2022, the Othawa Pack was dealt another blow as a male lion killed three adults on one specific occasion followed by one of the Ndzhenga Males killing an adult a few months later. The alpha female of the pack was a very easily distinguished wild dog with a very noticeable missing piece of her lip. Unfortunately, she was one of the adults lost to the much larger predator.
A blood-stained wild dog with a significant portion of her upper lip missing. We can only speculate as to what the story is behind the wound but it was likely lost to the jaws of a hyena or possibly even a fellow wild dog during a feeding frenzy.
The pack was now down to eight adults and we continued to see them as a pack of eight for a few months which included six males and two females. We are not sure what happened to one of the males at the beginning of 2023 but as of a few months into the year, the pack was down to seven.
Resilience and a Change of Fortunes
With the loss of the alpha female one of the last two females would need to become the leading light of the pack. Towards the end of May 2023, we found the pack on our property digging around a few termite mounds. Both females were heavily pregnant and we were hopeful that we would be lucky enough to have them den on our property. Two weeks later, however, our neighbours to our west reported that they had found a den on their property where the Othawa Pack had given birth to their new litter.
Wild dog pups emerging from their den to explore their surroundings
It would be just short of three months before we would see the Othawa Pack again and we hoped it would come with a change of fortunes for a pack that had been through its fair share of turmoil over the past few years. This is exactly what it was! Stay tuned for part two in the near future where I describe the elation of the very first sighting we had of the wild dog pups.
Barry. Appreciate the backstory sad as it is to the Othawa pack losses. This makes me remember the lone pair of Wild Dog where the female was missing an ear. Any update on them as well?
I was just thinking of them as well!!
Thanks so much for this post Barry. Cant wait for your next dispatch on this clever clan!!
Great blog. Barry, on those wild dogs! I am really happy, we saw them with their 19 cubs. It was such a wonderful sighting!
Wow Barry! now you are going to keep us wondering what happened and how many pups are there. The Plague Rock Male is certainly a male to be reconed with. Did you not get a fright with him standing in front of you and your tracker with the wild dog in his mouth. Hopefully you will enlighten us soon to the second part of your intriguing story.
Thank you Barry for the pictures and update on the wild dogs. Hope that the pack survives and drives in the future.
Thanks Barry, I remember reading a blog about Flat Rock killing a wild dog, (was it by Jess?) and there was an incredible short video of his attack. Would it be possible to add a link to this? The fact I remember it after nearly 3 years shows how exciting it was!
Hi Suzanne, yes Jess wrote this blog on it. https://blog.londolozi.com/2020/12/08/leopard-kills-wild-dog/
Love this! Thank you for sharing.
WOW! Thank you for the much needed update…sad about the alpha female in particular…she seemed to have survived so much. Look forward to part two! and three…
As I followed the story of lions prides for many years, and was incredulous about the fact that carnivores at the top hierarchy in the food chain in a blow were reduced down to barely nothing – the history of the Tsalala prides in Londolozi is an example- no surprise that smaller carnivores may have bad look too. I think that in several areas there’s still a problem with rage. Full packs died of that illnesses caught by domestic dogs, just like buffaloes and fam disease caught by cattle. Sometimes instead, they are so successful in some area for example in Botswana that packs fought against each other to death. We’ll see what happens…
Great story, Barry. I’d never heard their history told in chronological order like this. Looking forward to chapter 2!
Great reporting on the history of this pack Barry. I am looking forward to part two as I’m sure it will include photos and the continuing story of this resilient pack. I’m sure I saw them in April 2021 as a group of approximately 8, where we watched the alpha female who was in heat, keep the alpha male at bay. From your report, they lost this litter. Perhaps this time their pups will have an opportunity to grow into adults.
Hi Barry! It was great to see you for a few minutes on our way out of camp on our recent visit! This is a great story and we look forward to hearing more. Try as we did on our visit, we just missed seeing the big group of wild dogs. Next time will be luckier!
I had not idea this pack had been through so much turmoil, but I did remember the Flat Rock Male killing one of the adults. How awful that three were lost to a lone lion at once! That must have been an awful fight, and such a sad day. I wondered how there could have been 19 pups, but if the alpha female was lost and both the remaining females became pregnant, that certainly explains it. I wonder which will continue to reign as alpha going forward. Can’t wait for part two!