Friday

The Maned wolf is a very fascinating animal. Despite its name, the maned wolf is not a wolf at all, or a fox, coyote, or dog. It is the only member of the Chrysocyon genus, making it a truly unique animal, not closely related to any other living canid. It is believed that the maned wolf is the last surviving species of the Pleistocene Extinction, which wiped out all other large canids from the continent.

The maned wolf is native to South America, but is mainly found in Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia and Peru. The ancestors of the maned wolf are thought to have spread from North to South America about two million years ago. Broken away from other wolf species in North America, the maned wolf evolved into the unique animal that it is today.

It is known as the "stilt-legged fox" because that is what it mostly resembles. It is around 3 feet high, and weighs around 50 pounds, with most of that height coming from the legs. It is also a beautiful red color, with black and white highlights, much like the red fox.

The maned wolf is a nocturnal animal, which means that it sleeps during the day and hunts during the night. It also tends to hunt alone. It is known as an omnivore. It loves to eat the fruit "lobeira", which is a tomato-like fruit. This consists of half of the wolf's diet while the other half consists of small mammals, reptiles, birds and their eggs, and insects. At one time captive maned wolves were traditionally fed meat-heavy diets and this caused them to develop kidney stones.

The maned wolf lives a solitary life unlike the gray wolves which prefer to live in a pack. It does mate for life also but only interacts with its partner during breeding season. The pair of maned wolves, while they may not interact until breeding season, both share and defend the same territory.


There are two reasons that threaten the existence of the mane wolf. Habitat destruction is the main threat to maned wolves. They have almost no natural enemies, but nevertheless are in great danger because they need wide, uninterrupted spaces. The other reason is the human facter, because people kill the mane wolves for their body parts, which are believed to have magical properties. Superstitious beliefs say that the right eye is said to bring luck with gambling. It is also believed that a necklace with a maned wolf tooth worn by children prevents future dental problems. It would be a terrible shame to lose such a unique animal to the ignorant and self-serving practices of mankind.



VIDEO

Responses to "The Maned Wolf - a surviving species from the Pleistocene Extinction (Video)"

  1. Anonymous says:

    so beautiful creature! :) thanks for sharing, i dont think i've ever seen even a photo of "maned-wolf"

  2. Anonymous says:

    The maned wolf also lives in Brazil .

  3. Anonymous says:

    WOW.....what a beauty!! I have never seen one before........hopefully something is being done to conserve things lovies.......

  4. Unknown says:

    wow this is awesome thanks for sharing i absolutely love it

  5. Anonymous says:

    Go see Maned Wolves at the Endangered Wolf Center in Euerka, Missouri. You will see 4 other species as well. Be sure to call for reservations!

  6. Flyinlion says:

    A great and unique species of wolf! Let's protect it!

  7. Delphine says:

    loup à crinière : A PROTEGER

  8. Magnus says:

    Very cool! Thanks for taking the time to share this!

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