Three African wild dog brothers undertook the longest recorded mammal journey in Africa last year, traveling over 2,500 miles during an eight-month dispersal period in Zambia. The animals, members of an endangered species, embarked on this epic trek as part of their natural behavior to establish new territories for mating and reproduction.

The journey began in Kafue National Park in western Zambia and concluded in the Luangwa Valley to the east, covering a straight-line distance of approximately 340 miles—a movement distance that also sets a new record. This extensive trek surpasses the length of the well-known wildebeest and zebra migration across the Serengeti and is comparable to walking the length of Chile on foot. The previous record for the longest mammal migration in Africa, recorded in 2012, was also made by African wild dogs, covering 2,418 miles between northern Tanzania’s Loliondo region and Tsavo West National Park in Kenya.

The tracking of the brothers was part of a larger study conducted by the Zambian Carnivore Programme (ZCP), which monitored 19 groups of wild dogs. Researchers published their findings in the journal Ecology. Dr. Matt Becker, chief executive of ZCP, emphasized that these journeys illustrate the continuing natural connectivity of African wildlife habitats, though the terrain poses significant dangers, including threats from humans, vehicles, and bushmeat snares. He noted that maintaining and enhancing landscape connectivity beyond fenced protected areas is crucial for the survival of migratory species like African wild dogs.

Alongside the record-setting brothers, the team also tracked a group of sisters from the same pack. Their journey proved less successful, as two of the females died likely due to snares, underscoring the perils wild dogs face. Notably, the siblings had a brief reunion two months into their dispersal in Zambia’s copper-belt mining region, spending a day together before resuming their separate paths. The study highlighted that related wild dogs do not form new packs together.

African wild dogs currently number around 6,600 adults distributed among 39 distinct populations across the continent. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies the species as endangered due to habitat loss, shrinking prey bases, human-wildlife conflict, and widespread snares set by bushmeat hunters. Despite these challenges, the brothers’ journey demonstrates that wild dogs can navigate and survive in landscapes increasingly dominated by human activity.

Experts stress the importance of conserving connectivity across wide geographic regions. Dr. Nyambe Nyambe, director of the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area—a multi-national initiative spanning five countries—stated that preserving and improving migration corridors linking national parks, community lands, and countries offers vital opportunities for species such as wild dogs to thrive. With ongoing conservation efforts, these long-distance journeys remain critical to the resilience of Africa’s iconic wildlife.