Researchers use satellites to track wild dogs and other wildlife in the wild. Soaring wild dog population
A new study finds wild dog populations have soared over the last two decades, according to satellite imagery.
The study, published in the June issue of the journal Science, found that, since 2006, the number of wild dogs in North America has increased by more than 730 percent.
The increase has happened with little change in dogs’ natural population structure, according to University of Michigan researchers.
The results mean that the wild dog population in the United States has boomed in only two decades.
«We were surprised to find that the total number of wild dogs in the United States has not decreased over that time span,» study lead author Stephen Jones said in a statement. «But while there has been no significant change in the distribution of dog populations in recent decades, their current level of numbers is quite low compared to what it would be without widespread trapping, monitoring and management.»
Wild dog populations and how they are affected by habitat loss include wolves, foxes, cougars and bobcats.
Jones led the team by jarvees.comlooking at data from the U.S. Fish jarvees.comand Wildlife Service and the U.S. Geological Survey. (The federal agency uses data from both government agencies to collect data on the nation’s wild animals.)
For each year between 1992 and 2010, the researchers determined the total number of wild dogs in the United States for each geographic region. They then estimated the relative size of the total number of wolves, cougars and bobcats in the geographic region, plus their relative abundance, and its effect on the total number of wild dogs, Jones said. (The study did not assess their effect on the total number of dogs.)
The team also used satellite images of the West and East coasts to compare the current amount of wild dogs and the average size of their population during the previous 30 years. (Scientists typically work on a project that includes more than one year’s worth of data. For this one, a longer, more detailed study took place in 2012 to look at the wild dog population ovejarvees.comrall for all the United States, the study stated.)
As of 2012, the North American wild dog population stood at 6,700 dogs. During that period, population density in the North American West and East had increased slightly. In addition, in the South, the number of wild dogs had declined slightly over that time period, Jones said.
The overall size of all the wild dogs (determined t