Creature Feature

October 28, 2010 1:18 PM

The dhole, the maned wolf, and the Tibetan sand fox are just three of the creatures featured at The Featured Creature, a neat (and not overly serious) wildlife blog. There are even some that aren't canids, I think.

Also: Here is a sleeping dhole, which you will see in the relevant wikipedia article, which might further lead you to the ARKive page on dholes, with more pictures and videos.

posted by Wolfdog (31 comments total)

Is it just me or does the Tibetan sand fox's head look digitally manipulated in that first picture? He kind of looks like some hybrid man-dog.
posted by Burhanistan at 1:20 PM on October 28, 2010

Also, snub nosed monkey is staring at you through your window right now.
posted by Burhanistan at 1:26 PM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

HA HA HA TIBETAN SAND FOX LOOKS LIKE A LITTLE BEARDED MAN
posted by infinitywaltz at 1:30 PM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

a/k/a: Serious Fox
posted by 2bucksplus at 1:34 PM on October 28, 2010

Being a mefite, I prefer the a-hole.
posted by hal_c_on at 1:34 PM on October 28, 2010

Being a club kid, I prefer the K-hole.
posted by hermitosis at 1:36 PM on October 28, 2010

I had no idea that a "dhole" was a real creature. In the game Arkham Horror, a dhole is an unreasonably tough monster that looks like a giant worm.
posted by Electrius at 1:37 PM on October 28, 2010

Actually, I'll tell you who's staring at you through your window right now.
posted by Wolfdog at 1:37 PM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

Cool find, thanks. It's nice that they credit the sources for their images. (I remember first learning about dhole from the story about them in the Jungle Book.)
posted by Gator at 1:38 PM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

Dholes feature in Kipling's The Second Jungle Book in a story called Red Dog. Mowgli teases the dholes because they have hair between their toes.
posted by Barry B. Palindromer at 1:42 PM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

Dho!(le)
posted by Barry B. Palindromer at 1:43 PM on October 28, 2010

OK, snub-nosed monkey looks too much like Dwight K. Schrute to even be possible.
posted by scratch at 1:49 PM on October 28, 2010

Reminds me a bit of F U Penguin, but the blog's writer is only 20, so the wit and knowledge is commendable.
posted by Amanojaku at 1:54 PM on October 28, 2010

Here's one I would like to see more about. The "small, insectivorous hyena" known as the aardwolf.
posted by DaddyNewt at 1:57 PM on October 28, 2010

I much prefer this dhole to the one in Arkham Horror.
posted by edbles at 2:12 PM on October 28, 2010

The only things more awesome than Tibetan Sand Foxes are the adorable bundles of fluff they call lunch.
posted by fight or flight at 2:25 PM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]

"I'm very excited and extremely proud to announce that The Featured Creature™ will be collaborating with BBC Earth to bring you some of the best, and most exclusive creature content on the web. We will be sent images, videos, and stories before they are posted anywhere else so get ready for some really great stuff coming soon."

Looks like they're hittin' the big time!
posted by merelyglib at 2:30 PM on October 28, 2010

yer a sleepin' d-hole.
posted by klangklangston at 2:48 PM on October 28, 2010

Must be a lot of wind blowing that sand around for it to have developed a permanent squint like that.

The square face might result from the big jaw muscles necessary to operate such a long muzzle effectively, and the length of the muzzle might be there partly to help filter out the airborne sand and keep it out of the lungs.
posted by jamjam at 4:11 PM on October 28, 2010

You know, watching that footage of the Tibetan fox made a penny drop for me -- it has really FELINE movements. And now that I think of it, the facial features look kind of feline as well.

Maybe that's why it looks so "odd" -- it's a dog with cat features.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 4:57 PM on October 28, 2010

I once spent the day with 30 or so african hunting dogs. While i generally consider myself a cat person, any wild dogs are awesome, and thats a day that is unlikely to ever be bettered
posted by devon at 5:17 PM on October 28, 2010

That red panda is cuter than the cutest thing I've ever seen.
posted by tryniti at 5:22 PM on October 28, 2010

> That red panda is cuter than the cutest thing I've ever seen.

Wait...is it cuter than that red panda that is cuter than the cutest thing you've ever seen? Because I think you may be stuck in a cute feedback loop. It's not the worse thing to happen, certainly. But, you should know that it could make your head explode.
posted by Burhanistan at 7:25 PM on October 28, 2010

I used to run across dholes now and then, when I was working in the forests of South India. it was always a surprise, a sudden glimpse of a group flowing across the road, across the green and into the forest silent and purposeful, with nary a look at us.
posted by dhruva at 8:02 PM on October 28, 2010

"Humans are always fascinated by ugly fat things (ex. Rosie O'donnell…"

Hey!
posted by Nomyte at 9:17 PM on October 28, 2010

The Tibetan Sand Fox gives the appearance of being well trained in powa practices. I know the Buddha was not big on anthropomorphic assumptions, but, I can't help it. Something about the way it holds its head...
posted by kozad at 9:28 PM on October 28, 2010

> The Tibetan Sand Fox gives the appearance of being well trained in powa practices.

Better check for a soft spot on its cranium to be sure.
posted by Burhanistan at 9:48 PM on October 28, 2010

The Tibetan Sand Fox is now my new favorite animal. Really weird.
posted by OolooKitty at 10:04 PM on October 28, 2010

Those on the East and West Coast think we know all there is to know about North American fauna, especially the cute, fuzzy, cuddly ones... well think again. The Miner Cat (not really a cat) is about the cutest wild animal in the Americas, and I include the monkeys and little baby-pig peccaries.
posted by Slap*Happy at 10:35 PM on October 28, 2010

Kipling is where I first encountered the dhole, as well. Perhaps the only place, actually. I was always confused why the dogs had the same name as a drum.
posted by bardophile at 11:20 PM on October 28, 2010

Kipling is where I first encountered the dhole, as well. Perhaps the only place, actually. I was always confused why the dogs had the same name as a drum.

Silly colonialists, dholes are for desis.
posted by hal_c_on at 11:23 PM on October 28, 2010 [1 favorite]