Why Wild Dogs Are Africa’s Most Efficient Hunters

In Africa’s wilderness, wild dogs show why they are among nature’s most efficient hunters — with 80% success rates that dwarf even lions. At first glance, they seem playful and puppy-like. But when it’s time to hunt, these highly social predators work in perfect sync to isolate and chase prey.

🌿 Today’s target: a herd of impala.
Though impalas are faster, the wild dogs have the stamina and strategy to run them down. But one impala calf gets separated — a likely death sentence in this unforgiving landscape.

That is, until a secret superpower kicks in: scent glands hidden in their ankles release puffs of odor with every high-kicking leap — an aromatic trail that helps the young one reunite with her mother.

Elsewhere, life plays out on smaller scales:

🪺 A Jacana father, who takes care of the young alone, is down to one chick and guarding it with all he’s got.
🐉 A dragonfly displays vibrant colors and aerial acrobatics to claim territory and impress mates — even performing the signature “mating wheel” mid-air.

From coordinated wild dog packs to delicate insect rituals, every life here is locked in a struggle for survival and reproduction — a masterpiece of behavior and instinct.