Short-eared Dog - Evolution and Systematics

Evolution and Systematics

The short-eared dog's history is similar to that of the other carnivorans and many of the other terrestrial placental mammals of South America. After the formation of the Isthmus of Panama in the latter part the Tertiary (about 2.5 million years ago in the Pliocene), dogs migrated from North America to the southern continent as part of the Great American Interchange. The short-eared dog's ancestors adapted to life in tropical rainforests, developing the requisite morphological and anatomical features. Apart from its superficial resemblance to the bush dog, the short-eared dog seems not to be closely related to any fox-like or wolf-like canid (R. Burton; International Wildlife Encyclopedia, 2002). It is one of the most unusual canids. The latest systematics classifies it as a species in the tribe Canini, and its closest extant relative is probably the distant taxon, the Crab-eating Fox (Cerdocyon thous) (Pietrzak, 2007). It has 74 chromosomes (2 x 36 autosomes + one pair of sex chromosomes).

Two subspecies of this canid are recognized:

• Atelocynus microtis microtis
• Atelocynus microtis sclateri