This month, for the first time, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is exhibiting two dingoes. The Australian wild dogs, named Brumby and Elsey, are ready to explore their new home in the zoo's "Australian Adventure" exhibit.
The zoo will continue its monthlong celebration called "Dingo Days," wherein visitors can enter the zoo at a reduced rate if the temperature is 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32.2 degrees Celsius) or higher.
The male, Brumby, and his sister, Elsey, were part of a litter of seven puppies born on Jan. 30 at the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo in Indiana. Their parents are purebred dingoes that were brought to Fort Wayne from Australia.
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The number of purebred dingoes in the wild is in decline due to conflict with animals and humans and the widespread hybridization of dingoes with feral domestic dogs. They are listed as "vulnerable" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Dingoes (Canis lupus dingo) are thought to be descended from wolves and are the largest land-based predator in Australia. They are opportunistic hunters and will eat nearly anything they can catch or scavenge, according to a statement from the zoo, including kangaroos, cattle, sheep, wallabies, rodents and birds.
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