Alex Trelinski
A pair of rare Asian wild dogs- known as dholes- have arrived at Benidorm’s Terra Natura to form a breeding group which will contribute to conserving the animal.
Less than 2,500 adults are left in the wild and tend to live in the jungles, forests and prairies of Central and East Asia.
Factors contributing to their decline include habitat loss, loss of prey, and competition with other species.
Dholes are regarded as a very social animal and for hunting they group in herds and can catch prey weighing up to 10 times their weight, although their feeding is usually based on small mammals and reptiles.
The new pair at Terra Natura are a female named Dorinka, from Hungary’s Budapest Zoo and a male called Balto, from Magdeburg Zoo in Germany.
Both are two years old, and so have reached adulthood and have the ability to reproduce.
The veterinary team has started the first bonding sessions between Balto and Dorinka and they join the other dholes, Kira and Lennon, at the park.
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