In Trip Out of a 'Disney Movie,' Wild Dogs Smash a Record

A pack of canine siblings just set an African record, and it's not for speed. A new study in Ecology tracks three male African wild dogs from Zambia's Kafue National Park as they roamed more than 2,500 miles over nine months—farther than any African mammal previously recorded, including migrating wildebeest, per Science. Their sisters' story ended differently: Tracking data suggest at least two were killed in wire snares near the city of Kabwe, underscoring what researchers call the species' biggest current threat.

The epic journey, which the Guardian notes "sounds like a Disney movie," shows that wild dog populations across eastern and southern Africa may be more connected than assumed and may recolonize sites where they've vanished, per Science. But the extreme distances also highlight how fragmented their habitat has become, fueling calls for cross-border wildlife corridors and stronger efforts to curb snaring and conflicts with humans. "If we conserve and continue to improve these connections—spanning the range of national parks, community areas, nations, and regions—a lot of species like wild dogs can make the rest happen," says Dr. Nyambe Nyambe, director of an important conservation region in Africa, per the Guardian.