Wild dogs record 2,500-mile trek across Africa in search of a mate

A pack of African wild dogs has completed a record-breaking 2,485-mile (4000km) journey across the continent.

Scientists say it is the furthest recorded distance for any African land mammal searching for a mate, offering hope that wildlife can travel across vast distances despite growing human pressures.

The three brothers zigzagged across Zambia, navigating a landscape increasingly shaped by people and avoiding obstacles including major cities.

However, other wild dogs tracked with GPS collars in the study died in illegal snares, underlining the dangers they face.

Three sisters almost completed an equally epic journey, but stopped when one became trapped in a snare.

African wild dogs are among Africa's rarest predators, with only about 6,000 remaining in the wild.

They live in highly social packs, hunt together and are known for their vast roaming in search of new territory and breeding opportunities with other packs.

They cannot breed within the pack they are born into, so they either wait and may eventually inherit their pack, or set off at the age of two or three in search of a mate.