There are many animals in the world, which look cute, but are actually very ferocious. If you go on an adventure in the jungles of South America and see this seemingly small and cute cargo- water dogs, you should not take it lightly, they are small steel cannons that are not even afraid of green forest grasshoppers, and they are among the top 6 canines in the world in terms of danger.
The Chinese scientific name of the water dog is the Serval Dog, also known as the Jungle Dog and the Forest Dog, which belongs to the subfamily Serval Dog of the Canididae family. According to the Life Science Network, the appearance of the three relatives of the subfamily of serval dogs varies greatly, and the most unique is the water dog.
According to biologists, the distribution range of this wild animal in the Americas is extremely wide, such as Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil and dozens of countries and regions, there are traces of water dog activity.
Although widely distributed, they are more adaptable than other American animals, whether in forests, wetland grasslands, or jungles. But this does not mean that the number of water dogs is huge, in fact, the density of water dogs living is very low, and the number of water dogs found in the same place is pitifully small.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" >01 looks weird, neither like a domestic dog, nor like a fox, nor like a wolf, a bit like a flat-headed brother</h1>
As a small dog, the water dog has the most unusual appearance. In appearance, it looks neither like a domestic dog, nor like a fox, nor like a wolf, but rather like an animal in the ferret family.
The water dog looks strange and ghostly. The mouth is shorter and not very pointed, but the head is wider than the body, and the front looks like it has been stung by a horse bee, and it feels that the face is more puffy, and it has a fight with the Tibetan fox.
It is short in stature, with shorter limbs, shorter tail, shorter ears, and a rounded skull, with only a long barrel body. Adults are generally between 55-75 cm long, usually only 25–30 cm tall at the shoulders, and weigh only 8 kg when fully counted.
Curiously, water dogs have only 38 teeth, 6 less than canines, and have 3 incisors, 1 canine, 4 premolars and 2 molars on the upper and lower jaws, which is a bit similar to that of cats. The lower molars on the lower cleavage of water dogs are unidirected in the far middle and can elongate the length of the tooth blade, so that the teeth are enough to bite large rodents.
The coat of the water dog is hard and messy, and the coat color is generally brown or brown sandalwood, which looks a bit like the color of a brown bear. The head and neck are lighter, the abdomen is darker, the tail hairs are darker, and there is a lighter patch on the throat. Of course, the coat color varies slightly from region to region, some are black on the lower body, and some are yellow in the shoulder hair.
Although the water dog is an uncompromising canine, it has many characteristics of ferrets. Their heads are relatively wide compared to other dogs, their mouths are relatively short, and in terms of the appearance of their faces, they are very similar to the flat-headed brothers.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" >02 The only webbed dog in the world is often mistaken for an otter because of its webbing on its feet</h1>
Water dogs are a very fond of swimming canines, and their habitat is generally close to water sources. In hot weather, they will go into the water to play and prey together. Because of its short stature and fondness for water, it is often mistaken for an otter.
Amazingly, due to the frequent living at the water's edge, the feet of water dogs are very unique, and between the toes have evolved webs similar to fishing cats, which are spider-web-shaped, and the slits are large but not very developed.
Arguably, it is the only webbed dog in the world. It's a bit of a stretch to grow on canines, but that's the truth, and it's the result of the evolution of species. Many animals on the earth have to change their bodies in order to adapt to the environment.
This body structure allows the water dog to move freely in the water, not only good at swimming, but also diving, which is easy enough to catch a variety of fish. Its swimming ability is even better than that of many aquatic animals, so it has the name of water dog.
< h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" >03 vigilance is very high, even if you sleep a small movement can wake up, you can not eat will share the prey to others</h1>
The life of the water dog is the most irregular, very casual, whether it is night or day, it comes out to move. However, it is generally more frequent to show up in the morning before the sun goes down and in the evening.
At night, most of the time they sleep in tree holes or underground nests. The water dog is extremely vigilant, even if it is asleep, it will wake up at the slightest movement outside.
Water dogs generally move in small groups, usually 5-12 at a time, often wandering in the swamps by the river or lake. They act collectively every time, and the relationship between communities is very social, which seems to be common to canines.
Although water dogs can also dig holes, they are more lazy and like to pick up abandoned nests of other animals, such as armadillos. Water dogs sometimes even kill the armadillo, seize its hole, and then widen it a little, and become their own home; if they can't find a ready-made burrow for a while, they will find an empty tree trunk, and there is no way to rest in the open.
Within 1-3 kilometers of the cave is its territory, and the water dogs spend 2-4 hours a day to patrol, often while looking for food. For carnivores, territory means a fixed source of food; without territory, there will be a full meal of hunger, or even starvation.
Water dogs are not stupid, and they also constantly emit chirping, inhaling and whistling as communication signals, and they maintain communication in the dense forest with their unique sharp barking.
Sometimes, water dogs find a lot of prey, their own group can't eat it, and they will call other groups to share the prey.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" >04 stealth hunter, good at team combat, will use reasonable hunting strategies to surround and intercept prey</h1>
Although his legs are short and his appearance is not good, the water dog is a very good predator. Water dogs never hunt day and night, and they will go out to forage both at night and during the day.
Once they have locked on to their prey, it is difficult for them to escape the palm of their hand, whether they are fierce or weak. Why does such a skinny animal have such a powerful predatory ability?
First, the water dog has a long endurance and can track its prey for a long time, that is, it runs for 20 kilometers in a row, and it will not feel tired at all.
Second, it has a strong bite force, can hunt larger prey, and when the group preys, it can hunt large prey that is 5 times larger than its own size. In particular, it can dive to catch animals in the water, which is unique even in the canine family.
Finally, although water dogs also have the ability to fight alone, clear-eyed people know that water dogs do not have an advantage in body size. So their hunting style is typical of teamwork. In order to successfully catch prey, small groups usually hunt together.
The ability of water dogs to cooperate is second to none among all animals, and they generally hunt in small groups, with about 10-12 members. Water dogs will cooperate closely with each other, formulate combat plans, and use reasonable hunting strategies, and in the process of hunting, they will divide labor in an orderly manner, have a high degree of organization, and chase and intercept the prey.
For example, the group will select the most experienced leader as the main attack force, the younger members will be responsible for driving the prey, and some elderly water dogs will ambush the prey, so that the prey has no way to retreat when escaping.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" >05 loves to hunt tailless guinea pigs, hunting over 250 kg of American tapirs and catching prey that is 5 times larger than itself</h1>
The water dog is a carnivore, its diet is relatively extensive, never abandoned, able to prey on most small animals, and occasionally hunts smaller herbivores in groups.
They usually go out hunting together, whether it is rodents on land, small reptiles and amphibians, fish in the water, or water birds that often forage at the water's edge, are all objects captured by water dogs. Of course, the most popular predator is the tailless stinging guinea pig.
Although it is not as fierce as the flat-headed brother, but its personality is also much fiercer than ordinary dogs, the bite force is stronger, the courage is also larger, can kill prey 5 times larger than itself, stinging rats, capybaras, tailless stinging guinea pigs, but also hunt large prey such as western catfish, llamas and other large prey is often its mouth food, and there are even reports that water dogs hunt and kill American tapirs weighing 250 kg.
It can be seen that although the size of the water dogs is relatively small, they will not encounter the trouble of food shortage, even if there is no food to catch on land, because they have a very strong swimming ability, it is easy to fish in the river.
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > concluding remarks</h1>
Water dogs are facing many threats to humans, and their numbers have been greatly reduced due to the development of tourism, road planning and the deforestation of trees.
The first need of life is survival, every species has the right to ensure its own survival, for each of us, starting from ourselves, respect for every life is to respect human beings themselves.
Snow Spirit Valley Animal Lab/Production
References: Friends of Science Magazine, Life Science Network, Wildscreen, China Wildlife Conservation Association, China Science Daily