01 September 2011

This is not a "fox on stilts"

It's a maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus).  I have never seen one of these interesting creatures before.  Hat tip to 22 Words, where there is more information.

And a hat tip to long-time reader Binho, from Brazil, who sent a link with this info:
The maned wolf's evolutionary relationship to the other members of the canid family makes it a unique animal. Electrophoretic studies did not link Chrysocyon with any of the other canids studied.

One conclusion of this study is that the maned wolf is the only survivor of the late Pleistocene extinction of the large South American canids. Fossils of the maned wolf from the Holocene and the late Pleistocene have been excavated from the Brazilian Highlands...

The maned wolf is not closely related to any other living canid. It is not a fox, wolf, coyote, dog, or jackal, but it is a distinct canid.

8 comments:

  1. GuniSeptember 1, 2011 at 7:47 PM

    He is gorgeous!!! Thanks once again for sharing something new.

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  2. bunnitsSeptember 1, 2011 at 7:49 PM

    What a beauty!

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  3. Binho (from Brazil)September 1, 2011 at 7:51 PM

    HEI , Minnesotastan
    Here is Binho,how are you?
    This is a wolf-guará(in portuguese from Brazil is lobo-guará).
    guará is indian language(tupi)
    lobo = wolf
    http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobo-guar%C3%A1

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gZXOME7-ew&feature=fvst


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAH6_WNN3N8&feature=related

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  4. MinnesotastanSeptember 1, 2011 at 8:40 PM

    Thanks, Binho. Info added to the post.

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  5. Earache My EyeSeptember 1, 2011 at 9:16 PM

    Fossil Rim Wildlife Ranch in Glen Rose, Texas had a pair they were raising. We stayed at their lodge a few times and the maned wolves were in pens just outside the lodge. They are beautiful animals, but they have a quite a strong aroma!

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  6. HeavenlyJaneSeptember 2, 2011 at 7:12 AM

    There is a pair of maned wolves at the National Zoo in Washington DC. Plus there is a breeding poulation at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA.

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  7. AnonymousSeptember 2, 2011 at 7:39 AM

    We also have a pair at the Louisville (KY) Zoo. And yes, they are very aromatic, even from the far side of their (> 1 acre) pen.

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  8. CloudSampsonSeptember 3, 2011 at 6:43 PM

    Awesome! I like these animals, gotta draw one of them one of these days.

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