At first glance, you might think this is just another unhappy Fido in the backyard, pouring out its misery to the world:
https://youtu.be/mwxV1wbBrfU&rel=0
That’s the song of this barkless dog; no law requires it to be melodious.
Why, then, did conservationists get excited when they saw some out in the woods several years ago?
National Geographic explains:
https://youtu.be/ukCM9r2kpGE&rel=0
But there’s a problem with protecting the wild New Guinea singing dog.
Mongabay notes that this furry howler isn’t on the IUCN Red List because those specialists consider it to be a feral Fido: Canis familiaris.
Let’s wait until next week’s look at dingoes before getting into that debate.
For now, there is the question: how could people not see (and hear) hundreds of howling dogs roaming the New Guinea highlands for fifty years?
Sure, it’s wild and all, but this is an island, and nowhere near as big as Greenland, either.
It makes a lot more sense to me after watching this extremely hyper but fun and fact-packed video on Papua New Guinea, which is the eastern half of the island. (The highlands extend east-west across the island, including Indonesia’s half in the west.)
https://youtu.be/bushHvw__Mo&rel=0
Per Wikipedia, Bougainville voted almost 100% for independence in 2019 — and it doesn’t matter: PNG has the final say. Looks like Geography Now has pretty much nailed it re: their relationship. For a quieter, more in-depth look at all the islands (and their volcanoes), you might find this book interesting.
It’s so rugged up there that few outsiders have ever explored it thoroughly. Unearthly howls in so mysterious a place could evoke stronger human feelings than curiosity, too.
I do note that the Geography Now guy mentions the presence of marsupials and monotremes in this wilderness.
It’s interesting because one usually sees either placental mammals (like dogs and cats) OR marsupials/monotremes (the marsupial quoll he mentions evolved to fill Australia’s cat-ecomorph niche, although it isn’t particularly feline in appearance.)
More about dogs in this part of the world next week.
Lagniappe:
And here’s more about that town-destroying eruption.
Before (15 minutes long):
https://youtu.be/HSB7UOLVMeU&rel=0
During:
https://youtu.be/cc96jqvAROs&rel=0
GVP information; that should take you to 8/1994, but if not, just use the “Bulletins” tab and scroll down.
Rabaul, 2014 (waaait for it…):
https://youtu.be/oMxIlXW56cQ&rel=0
Featured image: Tara Lynn and Co/Shutterstock
Flight To Wonder 