Canis

This page is about a genus that contains extinct and extant species; species marked with † are extinct.

## Statistics

### Diet

Carnivorous

*Canis* is a genus of canid that lives worldwide since the Miocene.

## Description

*Canis* is known for being large carnivorous mammals hunting in packs. Some species, however, are extinct. Many canids share similar features such as their quadrupedal stance, fluffy coat, long legs, and long snout.

## Classification

### Evolution

Feliforms and caniforms emerged within carnivoramorpha 43 millon years ago. In the caniforms rose *Leptocyon*, who existed from 24 million years ago before evolving 11.9 million years ago into *Vulpes* and canini. *Eucyon* lived in North America from 10 million years and *E. davisi* moved into Eurasia by the Early Pliocene (6-5 million years ago). Some canids had emigrate from North America to Eurasia. Of these were *Eucyon*, *Vulpes* and *Nyctereutes*. From the Late Miocene to Early Pliocene, they were medium-sized predators, but not apex predators. ~5 million years ago, Old World *Eucyon* evolved into the first Canis, and canids would become the apex predators of the Palearctic. *Canis chihliensis* would appear in north China 4-3 million years ago, which was followed by mass-evolution across Eurasia in the Early Pleistocene ~1.8 million years ago (known as "the wolf event"). This is associated with the mammoth steppe and continental glaciation starting. *Canis arnensis*, *Canis etruscus* and *Canis falconeri* spread into Europe. In the New World, *Eucyon* brought forth Canis in the Miocene (6 million years ago) in southwestern United States and Mexico. 5 million years ago, *Canis lepophagus* appeared in the same area.

A 2021 genetic study showed the dire wolf belonged to a new genus (*Aenocyon*), which was the last of an ancient canid lineage indigenous to the New World that diverged before *Canis* appeared. It had been considered a distinct since the Miocene and has no evidence of *Canis* introgression. They hypothesized Neogene New World canids (such as *Canis armbrusteri* and *Canis edwardii*) could have been members of the *Aenocyon* lineage that convergently evolved an appearance very similar to *Canis*. True *Canis*, such as the gray wolf and coyote arrived in the New Word during the Late Pleistocene, where diet flexibility and/or hybridization allowed them to survive the Quaternary extinction event, contrary to the dire wolf. *Xenocyon* is a subgenus of *Canis*. Diversity in Canis had decreased by the upper Early-Middle Pleistocene, limiting in Eurasia to the small *Canis mosbachensis*-*Canis variabilis* group and large *Canis (Xenocyon) lycaonoides*. *Xenocyon* was hypercarnivorous, which led to the dhole and African wild dog.

The first record of *Canis* in Africa is C. sp. from South Turkwel, Kenya, 3.58-3.2 million years ago. In 2015, a mitochondrial genome sequencing and whole genome nuclear sequencing study found African and Eurasian canids suggested extant wolf-like canids spread through Africa and Eurasia at least 5 times from the Pliocene and Pleistocene, which is consistent with fossil evidence showing African canids resulted from Eurasian immigration. This is likely a coincident with the Plio-Pleistocene climatic oscillations of arid and humid conditions. In 2017, *Canis othmanii* was discovered at Wadi Sarrat, Tunisia, aged 700,000 years old. It was closer to Eurasian canids than African canids, based on morphology.

### Phylogeny

*Canis* was published in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, including domestic wolvesm wolves, coyotes and jackals. All Cani are phylogenetically related by having 78 chromosomes, and can all potentially interbreed. In 1926, the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature in Opinion 91 included Canis on its Official Lists and Indexes of Names in Zoology. In 1955, the ICZN's Direction 22 added *C. familiaris* as the type specimen of *Canis* and to the official list.

—Richard H. Tedford
Lindblad-Toh et a. (2005) find DNA phylogeny of Canis, which has been modified to include new species:

The ICZN/SSC Canid Specialist Group (2019) recommends the side-striped jackal and black-bellied jackal form a monophyletic lineage, based on DNA evidence, and should be placed in a new genus (*Lupulella*) under *L. adusta* and *L. mesomelas*.

## Species

* *C. adustus*?
	+ *C. a. adustus*
	+ *C. a. bweha*
	+ *C. a. grayi*
	+ *C. a. kaffensis*
	+ *C. a. lateralis*
	+ *C. a. notatus*
* *C. anthus*
	+ *C. a. algirensis*
	+ *C. a. anthus*
	+ *C. a. bea*
	+ *C. a. lupaster*
	+ *C. a. riparius*
	+ *C. a. soudanicus*
* *C. aureus*
	+ *C. a. aureus*
	+ *C. a. cruesemanni*
	+ *C. a. ecsedensis*
	+ *C. a. indicus*
	+ *C. a. moreotica*
	+ *C. a. naria*
	+ *C. a. syriacus*
* *C. hallstromi*
* *C. himalayensis*
* *C. latrans*
	+ *C. l. cagottis*
	+ *C. l. clepticus*
	+ *C. l. dickeyi*
	+ *C. l. frustror*
	+ *C. l. goldmani*
	+ *C. l. hondurensis*
	+ *C. l. impavidus*
	+ *C. l. incolatus*
	+ *C. l. jamesi*
	+ *C. l. latrans*
	+ *C. l. lestes*
	+ *C. l. mearnsi*
	+ *C. l. microdon*
	+ *C. l. ochropus*
	+ *C. l. peninsulae*
	+ *C. l. texensis*
	+ *C. l. thamnos*
	+ *C. l. umpquensis*
	+ *C. l. vigilis*
	+ †*C. l. orcutti*
	+ †*C. l. harriscrooki*
	+ †*C. l. riviveronis*
* *C. lupus*
	+ *C. l. albus*
	+ †*C. l. alces*
	+ *C. l. arabs*
	+ *C. l. arctos*
	+ *C. l. baileyi*
	+ †*C. l. beothucus*
	+ †*C. l. bernardi*
	+ *C. l. campestris*
	+ *C. l. chanco*
	+ *C. l. columbianus*
	+ *C. l. communis*
	+ *C. l. crassodon*
	+ *C. l. cubanensis*
	+ *C. l. dingo*
	+ *C. l. filchneri*
	+ *C. l. floridanus*
	+ *C. l. fuscus*
	+ *C. l. griseoalbus*
	+ †*C. l. gregoryi*
	+ †*C. l. hattai*
	+ †*C. l. hodophilax* (Japanese wolf)
	+ *C. l. hudsonicus*
	+ *C. l. irremotus*
	+ *C. l. italicus*
	+ *C. l. labradorius*
	+ *C. l. ligoni*
	+ *C. l. lupus*
	+ *C. l. mackenzii*
	+ *C. l. manningi*
	+ †*C. l. mogollonensis*
	+ †*C. l. monstrabilis*
	+ *C. l. nubilus*
	+ *C. l. occidentalis*
	+ *C. l. orion*
	+ *C. l. pallipes*
	+ *C. l. pambasileus*
	+ *C. l. tundrarum*
	+ *C. l. signatus*
	+ †*C. l. youngi*
* *C. mesomelas*
	+ *C. m. mesomelas*
	+ *C. m. schmidti*
* *C. simensis*
	+ *C. s. citernii*
	+ *C. s. simensis*
* *C. dingo*?
* *C. familiaris/C. l. familiaris*
	+ *C. cf. familiaris* (Pleistocene dog)
* *C. lycaon/C. l. lycaon*
* *C. rufus/C. l. rufus*
* †*C. apolloniensis*
* †*C. armbrusteri* (Armbruster's wolf)
* †*C. arnensis*
* †*C. brevicephalus*
* †*C. cedazoensis*
* †*C. chihliensis*
* †*C. cipio*
* †*C. edwardii*
* †*C. etruscus* (Etruscan wolf)
* †*C. ferox*
* †*C. gezi*
* †*C. leilhardi*
* †*C. lepophagus*
* †*C. longdanensis*
* †*C. mosbachensis*
* †*C. nehringi*
* †*C. palmidens*
* †*C. variabilis*
* †*C. orcensis*
* †*C. (Xenocyon) africanus*
* †*C. (Xenocyon) antonii*
* †*C. (Xenocyon) lycaonoides*
* †*C. (Xenocyon) falconeri*
* †*Canis* *(X.) dubius*
* †*C. othmanii*
* †*C. apolloniensis*
* †*C. cyonoides*
* †*C. geismarianus*
* †*C. indianensis*
* †*C. latidentatus*
* †*C. lydekkeri*
* †*C. montanus*
* †*C. morenis*
* †*C. occidentalis*
* †*C. osorum*
* †*C. palaeoplatensis*
* †*C. primigenius*
* †*C. teilhardi*
* †*C. thooides*
* †*C. hewitti*
* †*C. atrox*?
* *C. latrans* x *C. familiaris*
* *C. lupus* x *C. latrans*
* *C. l. rufus* x *C. lycaon*
* *C. l. baileyi* x *C. latrans*
* *C. l. occidentalis* x *C. latrans*
* *C. l. dingo* x *C. familiaris*
* *C. aureus* x *C. familiaris*
	+ Sulimov dog
* *C. lupus* x *C. familiaris*

### Reassigned

* †*"C." ursinus*
* †*"C." dirus*
	+ †*"C." dirus dirus*
	+ †*"C." dirus guildayi*
	+ †*"C. dirus nebrascensis*"
* †*Canis (Pseudalopex) australis* (=*Lycalopex*)

## Notable Specimens

* YG 648.1 "Zhùr": This specimen, Zhùr (meaning 'wolf' in the Hän language), is a mummy of a Pleistocene-aged mummy of a gray wolf pup. The remains were found thawing in the Klondike goldfields near Dawson City in the Yukon. They were excavated and recovered near a small tributary in the Last Chance Creek during hydraulic thawing, which the permafrost that preserved her. The remains are important to the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in people, who named the carcass. These remains give insight into the animals appearance, ecology, gender, and overall short lifespan. Zhùr is the most complete wolf mummy discovered, and died 57,000 years ago when her den collapsed and froze her body. According to further insight, she ate aquatic-based foods and was related to Beringian and Russian gray wolves, and she assumes a basal position in modern gray wolf evolution .

## Ecology

Wolves are usually social pack hunters that rely upon a leader to direct the pack. Wolves are usually medium to high on the food chain because they are very agile, dangerous predators.

## References

1. ↑ https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Mammals/Gray-Wolf#:~:text=Gray%20wolves%2C%20or%20timber%20wolves,like%20a%20large%20German%20shepherd.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canis
3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 3.23 3.24 3.25 3.26 3.27 3.28 3.29 3.30 3.31 3.32 3.33 3.34 3.35 3.36 3.37 3.38 3.39 3.40 3.41 3.42 3.43 3.44 3.45 3.46 3.47 3.48 3.49 3.50 3.51 3.52 3.53 3.54 3.55 3.56 3.57 3.58 3.59 3.60 3.61 3.62 3.63 3.64 3.65 3.66 3.67 3.68 3.69 3.70 3.71 3.72 3.73 3.74 3.75 3.76 3.77 3.78 3.79 3.80 3.81 3.82 3.83 3.84 3.85 3.86 3.87 3.88 3.89 3.90 3.91 3.92 3.93 3.94 3.95 3.96 Wikispecies
4. ↑ https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(22)00603-0
5. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution\_of\_the\_wolf
6. ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 6.19 6.20 6.21 6.22 6.23 6.24 6.25 6.26 6.27 6.28 6.29 6.30 6.31 6.32 6.33 6.34 https://paleobiodb.org/classic/basicTaxonInfo?taxon\_no=41198
7. ↑ https://diaridigital.urv.cat/en/a-new-fossil-species-of-small-wolf-dated-1-6-million-years-old-is-found-at-the-sites-of-orce-southern-spain/
8. ↑ https://sciencepress.mnhn.fr/fr/periodiques/comptes-rendus-palevol/20/17
9. ↑ https://www.biolib.cz/en/taxon/id135769/
10. ↑ https://paleobiodb.org/classic/basicTaxonInfo?taxon\_no=433176
11. ↑ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1631068317300428?via%3Dihub
12. ↑ https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-03694237/
13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 13.6 13.7 13.8 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canid\_hybrid
14. ↑ https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(20)31686-9#.X-EMga0JBlo.twitter
15. ↑ https://wolves.live/ecology/