Howls, not barks
Dingoes rarely bark. They howl, like wolves, to call to each other.
The outback
Dingo
Canis dingo
A lean, sandy-yellow wild dog with pricked ears, white feet and a bushy tail.
- Size
- About 60cm at the shoulder
- Look for it
- All year round
- Where
- Deserts, grassland and forest edges across Australia
Trots after you, and runs to catch up. Move your pointer and see.
When to look
Dingo
Good to know
Six things about the dingo
Here for thousands of years
Dingoes came to Australia with people at least 3,500 years ago, and have lived wild ever since.
The longest fence
The Dingo Fence, built to keep them away from sheep, is more than 5,000 kilometres long.
Bendy wrists
A dingo can turn its wrists and its head further than a pet dog, which helps it to climb and to open things.
Top of the food chain
It is the biggest land hunter in Australia, and helps to keep foxes and feral cats in check.
Family packs
A pack is usually a pair and their young, who help to raise the next litter.
The real thing
Photos of the dingo
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Photos are from Wikimedia Commons, used under the free licences shown. They have been resized, and cropped where they appear in link previews.
How to spot one
K'gari (Fraser Island) is the best-known place to see them. Look along the beach early in the morning.
How to help
Never feed a dingo. Fed dingoes lose their fear of people, become a danger and are then shot.
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