Canis anthus and Canis aureus
African golden wolves, Canis anthus, were believed to be an African subspecies of the Eurasian golden jackal, Canis aureus, until 2015 when genetic tests showed that they were more closely related to grey wolves. That makes them the first “new” canines to be discovered in 150 years.
Photos show golden jackals on the left and African golden wolves on the right
Golden jackals are widespread in Europe and Asia. They are most common in southern Eurasian countries ranging from Myanmar (Burma) to Greece, but they are spreading further into European countries. Within the past 20-30 years they have spread into Italy and Ukraine, and there was even a sighting of one in Norway last year.
African golden wolves, also known as African wolves or golden wolves, are found in all North African countries and some of West, Central, and East Africa. Generally found in grasslands, they also live in forests, savannas, and desert environments. Golden jackals are rarely found anywhere besides grasslands.
Golden jackal ^
Small animals including rodents, reptiles, birds, and insects make up roughly half of the golden jackal’s diet, the other half consisting of fruits and other vegetation. They are also known to follow tigers to scavenge off large animals they kill. Golden jackals are very social and do almost everything in pairs, including hunting and scavenge.
Golden jackals are good hunters due to an amazing sense of smell. Because of this, people bred them with huskies and spitz dog breeds to create the sulimov dog. Sulimov dogs have one of the strongest senses of smell of any dog breed and are used for this reason as sniffer dogs.
Wild boars make up most of the African wolf’s diet, but they also frequently hunt small animals like ground squirrels, hares, and insects like the golden jackal. Also like golden jackals, African wolves are pretty social. They rarely form large packs like grey wolves, who they are more closely related to than to golden jackals, but their adult offspring will often stay with the parents to help care for pups.
I rate the golden wolf and jackal 15/10. One hid as a jackal for many years and the other steals from tigers. Amazing
African wolf ^
Photo credits:
(1) Jan Ebr (2) Lee R. Berger (3) Carlo Galliani (4) Vinay Narayana Swamy (5) Cécile Bloch (6) Mourad-Harzallah
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Species: Wolves (Canis)
This series focuses on helping people choose interesting species for their fursona through informing them of the many, often overlooked, species out there! This post is about wolves.
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Species:
Red Wolf (Canis rufus)
Size: 66cm (26in) height (at shoulder), 121cm (4ft) lenght, 20-36kg (45-80lbs)
Diet: carnivorous, preys on deer, small mammals
Habitat: coastal prairies, marshes, forests
Range:
Status: critically endangered/endangered
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Eastern Wolf/Timber Wolf (Canis lycaon)
Size: 63-91cm (25-36in) height (at shoulder), 160cm (5.5ft) lenght, 23-30kg (53-67lbs) weight
Diet: carnivorous, preys on deer, large herbivores
Habitat: deciduous forests, coniferous forests, mixed forests
Range (in blue):
Status: imperiled/threatened
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Coyote (Canis latrans)
Size: 58-66cm (21-25in) height (at shoulder), 76-86cm (2.4-2.8ft) lenght, 6.8-21kg (14-46lbs) weight
Diet: omnivorous, preys and scavenges small mammals, deer, livestock, insects, carrion, berries
Habitat: varied, sagebrush-steppe, forests, prairies, deserts, savannahs, alpine meadows, temperate ranforests, urban
Range:
Please note, the coyote has 19 subspecies!
They all have small but interesting variation, and can vary in size quite dramatically. If you'd like a coyote fursona, I recommend checking them out! The picture above is of a mountain coyote (Canis latrans lestes)
Status: least concern
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Grey Wolf (Canis lupus)
Size: 80-85cm (31-33in) height (at shoulder), 100-160cm (3.2-5.2ft) length, 23-80kg (50-176lbs) weight
Diet: carnivorous, preys on large ungulates, small mammals
Habitat: varied, temperate forests, mountains, tundra, taiga, grasslands, deserts
Range:
Please note, the grey wolf has 38 subspecies (the above pictured being eurasian wolf, Canis lupus lupus)!
Of which I would like to highlight:
Arabian Wolf (Canis lupus arabs)
Arctic Wolf (Canis lupus arctos)
Mexican Wolf (Canis lupus baileyi)
Also, please note the grey wolf comes in a variety of colors, regardless of subspecies
Status: least concern
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Dingo (Canis dingo)
Size: 52-60cm (20-23in) height (at shoulder), 120-150cm (3.9-4.9ft) lenght, 10-15kg (22-33 lbs) weight
Diet: carnivorous, preys on small mammals, livestock
Habitat: varied, spanning all if Australia
Range:
Please note, the dingo's taxonomic classification is debated - you may find it also listed as Canis familiaris, Canis familiaris dingo, or Canis lupus dingo
Status: threatened
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African Wolf/Golden Wolf (Canis lupaster)
Size: 40cm (15in) height, 7-15kg (14-33lbs) weight
Diet: Carnivorous, preys on small mammals, small reptiles, ground-nesting birds, insects
Habitat: mediterranean, scrublands, forests, savannahs
Range:
Please note! The african wolf has 6 subspecies!
Status: least concern
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Ethiopian Wolf (Canis simensis)
The Ethiopian wolf has 2 subspecies:
Northern Ethiopian Wolf (Canis simensis simensis)
Southern Ethiopian Wolf (Canis simensis citernii)
Size: 53-61cm (20-24in) height (at shoulder), 100cm (3.2ft) lenght, 11-20kg (24-44lbs) weight
Diet: carnivorous, preys on small mammals
Habitat: afroalpine grasslands, heathlands
Range:
Status: threatened
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Golden Jackal (Canis aureus)
Size: 46-51cm (18-20in) height (at shoulder), 69-84cm (27-33in) lenght, 8-11kg (18-24lbs) weight
Diet: omnivorous, preys and scavenges small mammals, small reptiles, ground birds, fish, insects, fruit
Habitat: open savannahs, deserts, arid grasslands
Range:
Please note! The golden jackal has 7 subspecies!
Status: least concern
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