Chrysocyon brachyurus, Illiger, 1815
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6331155 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6335033 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03ACCF40-BF3A-FFC7-7BA1-F707F7BCDF51 |
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treatment provided by |
Conny |
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scientific name |
Chrysocyon brachyurus |
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Maned Wolf
Chrysocyon brachyurus View in CoL
French: Renard a criniere / German: Mahnenwolf / Spanish: Aguaraguazu
Taxonomy. Canis brachyurus Illiger, 1815 View in CoL .
Type locality not specified, but later restricted to Paraguay.
The species was originally placed in the genus Canis , but is now widely included in the monotypic genus Chrysocyon . Monotypic.
Distribution. Grasslands and scrub forest of C South America, from NE Brazil through the Chaco of Paraguay into Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil, W to Bolivia and Peru border, and S into Uruguay and Argentina to the 30° S parallel. View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head-body 95-115 cm and tail 38-50 cm; weight 20-5-30 kg. The Maned Wolf is hard to confuse with any other canid due to its long, thin legs, long reddish orange fur, and large ears. The English common name comes from the mane-like strip of black fur running from the back of the head to the shoulders, averaging 470 mm in length. Muzzle black, throat white, inner ears white, forelegs black, and most of distal part of hindlegs black. An average of 44% ofthe tail is white at the distal end, but the extent of white varies from 17-66% of the tail length. No underfur present. The adult dental formulais13/3,C1/1,PM 4/4, M 2/3 = 42.
Habitat. Favors tall grasslands, shrub habitats, woodland with an open canopy “cerrado”, and wet fields (which may be seasonally flooded). Some evidence indicates that they may prefer areas with low to medium shrub density. Maned Wolves are also seen in cultivated areas and pastures. Daytime resting areas include gallery forests, cerrado, and marshy areas near rivers. There is some evidence that they can utilize cultivated land for hunting and resting, but additional studies are essential to quantify how well the species tolerates intensive agricultural activity.
Food and Feeding. Omnivorous, consuming principally fruits and small- to mediumsized vertebrates. Numerous studies document a broadly varied diet of c. 50% plant and c. 50% animal material. The fruit Solanum lycocarpum grows throughout much of the range and is a primary food source; other important items include small mammals ( Caviidae , Muridae, Echimydae ) and armadillos ( Dasypodidae ), other fruits ( Annonaceae , Myrtaceae, Palmae , Bromeliaceae , and others), birds ( Tinamidae , Emberizidae , and others), reptiles, and arthropods. Although the frequency of plant and animal items found in fecal samples is approximately equal, the biomass of animal items is usually greater than that of plant items. Certain items, such as rodents and Solanum, are consumed year round, but diet varies with food availability. At least occasionally, Pampas Deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus) are also consumed. In one study, deer occurred in 2:4% of 1673 fecal samples analyzed. Strategies for hunting animal prey include stalking with a final pounce, digging after burrowing animals, leaping into the air to capture flying birds and insects, and sprinting after fleeing deer. Approximately 21% of all hunting attempts end with the successful capture of prey, and the strategies do not differ in their success rates. Maned Wolves have been recorded feeding on Coypu that were caught in traps set by hunters, and have been observed scavenging opportunistically on road-kill carcasses.
Activity patterns. Nocturnal and crepuscular. May forage for up to eight consecutive hours.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. Maned Wolves appear to be facultatively monogamous. Pairs are not often seen together, although researchers have observed pairs resting, hunting, and traveling together. Home ranges ofpairs in Serra da Canastra National Park averaged 25-2 km? (21- 7-30 km? n = 3 pairs). Home ranges studied elsewhere are larger, averaging 57 km? (15:6-104-9 km? n = 5) in Aguas Emendadas Ecological Station and 49-0 km? (4-7-79-5 km? n = 5) in Emas National Park. Home range boundaries appear stable over time and are defended against adjacent pairs. Termite mounds are preferentially used as urine-markingsites, and more marks are placed on the upwind side of objects than on the downwind side. Floater individuals without territories appear to move along territory boundaries and do not scentmark. The most frequently heard vocalization is a loud roar-bark, which may occur during any time of the day or night throughout the year.
Breeding. Females enter estrus once per year for approximately five days. Peak breeding season is from April to June. There are numerous published accounts of breeding behavior in captivity, but little information is available from wild populations. In captivity, the frequency of vocalizations (roar-bark) and scent marking increases during the weeks prior to mating, and the amount of time a pair spends in close proximity increases significantly during the estrous period. Courtship is characterized by frequent approaches, mutual anogenital investigation, and playful interactions. Mounting may occur frequently during estrus; successful breeding includes a copulatory tie that may last several minutes. In Emas National Park, Brazil, a breeding pair observed at night for approximately three and a half hours foraged together and vocalized frequently whenever one partner was out of sight. The male marked with urine or feces wherever the female marked. A breeding display lasting ten minutes concluded in a two-minute copulatory tie, after which the pair continued to forage together. Gestation length is approximately 65 days, the majority of births occurring from June to September, during the dry season. One female gave birth to three pups in a bed of tall marsh grass. At 45 days of age the pups had notyet left the den and weighed 2 kg (females) and 2-25 kg (males). All dens found in the wild have been above ground, sheltered by natural features such as shrub canopies, rock crevices, gullies, and dry mounds in marshy, tall-grass areas. In captivity, an analysis of 361 births indicated that parturition peaks in June (winter), and the average litter size is three (range 1-7). Birth weights average 390-456 g (n = 8). In captive animals, nursing bouts begin to decline after the first month, and weaning is complete at c. 15 weeks. Pups begin consuming solids regurgitated by the parents at about four weeks of age; regurgitation has been recorded up to seven months after birth. Females with 7-14-week-old pups have been observed hunting for continuous periods of eight hours over 3 km from their den sites and pups. Pups stay in the mother’s home range for approximately one year, when they begin to disperse. Juveniles attain sexual maturity at around the same time, but usually do not reproduce until the second year. One of the many unknown aspects of Maned Wolf behavioris the role the male plays in rearing pups. Pups have been seen accompanied by two adults, and a female with pups was seen accompanied by a male many times. In captivity, males increase pup survival rates and are frequently observed regurgitating to pups and grooming them. Nonetheless, direct confirmation of male parental care in the wild isstill lacking.
Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II. Classified as Near Threatened on The IUCN Red List. Current global population is estimated to number c. 13,000 mature individuals. Maned Wolves are protected by law in many parts of their range, but enforcement is frequently problematic. Protected in Argentina (classified as “endangered” on the Red List) and included on the list of threatened animals in Brazil. Maned Wolves exist in low densities throughout their range, although in some areas of central Brazil, they appear to be more common. The most significant threat to Maned Wolf populations 1s habitat reduction, especially for agricultural conversion. The cerrado, for example, has been reduced to about 20% ofits original area, and only 1-5% is currently protected. In addition, habitat fragmentation causes the isolation of sub-populations.
Road kills represent one of the main causes of mortality of Maned Wolves in Brazil, especially for young individuals and sub-adults. Highways border many of the Conservation Units of the Brazilian cerrado, and drivers often do not respect speed limits. Reserves close to urban areas often have problems with domestic dogs, which pursue and may kill Maned Wolves and can also be an important vector of disease. Diseases may represent a significant cause of mortality in the wild, but there is very little information available on the health of wild populations. Domestic dogs also possibly compete with the Maned Wolffor food. Maned Wolves are not viewed as a serious threat to livestock, although they may occasionally be shot when caught raiding chicken pens. Hunting them is prohibited in Brazil, Paraguay, and Bolivia.
Bibliography. Azevedo & Gastal (1997), Bartmann & Nordhoff (1984), Beccaceci (1992), Bernardes et al. (1990), Bestelmeyer (2000), Bestelmeyer & Westbrook (1998), Brady (1981), Brady & Ditton (1979), Cabrera (1958), Carvalho & Vasconcellos (1995), Chebez (2008), Dietz (1984, 1985), Fonseca et al. (1994), IUCN (2008), Jacomo (1999), Juarez & Marinho (2002), Langguth (1975), Mones & Olazarri (1990), Motta-Junior (1997), Motta-Junior et al. (1996), Ratter et al. (1997), Richard et al. (1999), Rodden, Rodrigues & Bestelmeyer (2004), Rodden, Sorenson et al. (1996), Santos (1999), Silveira (1968, 1999), Van Gelder (1978).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
