There is no question that the dingo is a very capable predator.  Predators often exhibit highly intelligent and adaptable behaviour and hunting techniques to catch, subdue or kill prey.

Photo courtesy of Rod Hope

Recent peer-reviewed publications by PhD student, Linda Behrendorff highlight some of the adaptive hunting techniques occasionally observed of dingoes on K’gari-Fraser Island.

The articles highlight the dingoes’ ability to entrap, tire and drown an adult swamp wallaby that would take a group of dingoes under normal circumstances.  Another dingo used the water to drown a captured echidna before consumption, utilising available surf and water resources reduce the level of energy input for the gain.

For some interesting insight into one of island’s top predator’s why not check out this research for yourselves?

• Clever girl? An observation of innovative prey handling by a dingo (Canis dingo). Pacific Conservation Biology – Research Article http://www.publish.csiro.au/PC/PC17044
• Behrendorff, L. (2018) Clever girl? An observation of innovative prey handling by a dingo (Canis dingo). Australian Mammalogy.
• A prickly subject: innovative handling of a difficult prey. Australian Mammalogy Research Note https://doi.org/10.1071/AM17024
• Behrendorff, L. (2017) A prickly subject: innovative handling of a difficult prey. Australian Mammalogy.

Contributed by Linda Behrendorff, PhD candidate, University of Queensland