This page explains how we research, write and update the articles on african-wilddogs.com. We follow it for new posts and for edits to older ones.
Who is responsible
Gabriel researches, edits and approves each article before it goes live. He also reviews every correction that readers send in. You can read more about him on our about page.
Sources we use
We base our articles on primary and expert sources:
- Peer-reviewed papers in journals such as Nature, Proceedings of the Royal Society B and the PLOS journals.
- The IUCN Red List assessment for Lycaon pictus, which sets the official population figures and threat status.
- Reports from conservation groups, including the African Wildlife Foundation and the African Wild Dog Conservancy.
- University resources such as the Animal Diversity Web from the University of Michigan.
We treat news stories and popular websites as leads only. Before we repeat a claim from them, we look for the study or report behind it.
How we cite
We link to sources inside the text, next to the claim they support. Where it matters, we name the study, the place and the year, for example a GPS collar study from Botswana. We avoid vague lines such as “experts say”.
Numbers and uncertainty
Population counts, hunt success rates and running speeds vary between studies and regions. So we give ranges instead of one neat figure, and we say where each number comes from. When a popular claim does not match the research, we explain the gap.
Updates and dates
Every article shows a “Last updated” date, which is the date of its latest edit. We also recheck our main articles when the IUCN publishes a new assessment or a major study comes out.
Corrections
If we get something wrong, we fix it as soon as we can check the facts. For a major error, we add a short note to the article that explains what changed.
To report an error, use our contact page. Please name the article and include your source if you have one.
Independence
No tour operator, zoo or charity pays us or reviews our articles before they go live. The site has no sponsors today. If that changes, we will label any sponsored or affiliate link on the page where it appears.
Images
Most of our photos come from Unsplash, and we credit each photographer in the caption. We only use photos that show African wild dogs, never other species labelled as wild dogs.
Safety topics
Some readers visit before a safari or a school project. So on safety topics we keep wild animals and captive animals apart, and we never encourage anyone to approach or feed wild dogs.