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| There are no golden jackals in Ethiopia. They're all wolves | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: May 25 2014, 08:38 PM (2,193 Views) | |
| MightyKharza | May 25 2014, 08:38 PM Post #1 |
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Omnivore
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The search on the Golden Jackal (Canis aureus) and a Genetically Distinct Lion (Panthera leo) of Ethiopia Habitat loss and global climate change becomes increasing threat for the existence of many wildlife species across the globe. IUCN provide conservation status for wide range of mammals which has an important implication for prioritizing conservation efforts to endangered species. However, large proportion of all living organisms remains uncharacterized (Wilson, 2005) which makes the IUCN assessment difficult. Hence, clarifying the taxonomic uncertainties in animal taxon becomes increasingly important. African wolf is reported from the Ethiopian highlands and latter in the western African countries (Rueness et al., 2011; Gaubert et al., 2012; Fig 1). Recently, we carried out a study on the distribution pattern of African wolf and sympatric “golden jackals (Canis aureus)”. We found the African wolf to be distributed across the country. However, no DNA conformation was found for the golden jackal (Canis aureus) presence. Hence, we questioned the existence of the golden jackal in Ethiopia. We also have enough reasons to question the validity of the former reports of golden jackal in Africa. African wolf is found in a very striking morphological variation that potentially leads to confusion on taxonomy which is based on morphological features. With this research, I aim to clarifying the taxonomy uncertainties of African canids and determine whether the Golden jackal (Canis aureus) existed in Africa. This project needs samples of canid across Africa, and collaborators interested to be enrolled in this project by supplying pellet or tissue samples are most well come. http://www.rufford.org/projects/anagaw_atickem_meshesha |
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| Cape Leopard | May 25 2014, 10:53 PM Post #2 |
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Heterotrophic Organism
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Interesting. |
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| Sicilianu | May 25 2014, 11:52 PM Post #3 |
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Omnivore
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What is somewhat more interesting is the close phenotypic resemblence of certain African wolf individuals to the southeast Asian pariah types, e.g. dingo and NGSD. African wolf ![]() ![]() Dingo ![]() ![]() I have a feeling that the African wolf may be part of the missing piece to the puzzle of the origin of the domestic dog. My prediction is that the African wolf will be deemed a separate species, or at a minimum a very distinct subspecies. I think it may be sister to the ancient (sub)species of wolf that gave rise to the domestic dog in Europe - here is a quote from the recent study of ancient European dog DNA: First, most living dogs turned out to be more closely related to ancient wolves than to modern ones. “The [gray wolf] population that gave rise to modern dogs is most likely extinct,” Thalmann says. This makes sense given what we know about phylogeography of mammals in North Africa, namely that North African mammals are more closely related to conspecifics in Europe and the Middle East than they are to sub-Saharan animals, with the closest relatives usually being in southern Europe. Panthera leo is a great example of this phylogeography in action. The African wolf probably survived because the invading northern subspecies of wolf most likely came back to Europe after the last Glacial period, so their range did not extend all the way into Africa. Furthermore, these more social and large wolves probably would not be able to survive in more arid conditions with less prey to sustain their size and social structure. Given what we know about most dog-wolf interactions, I would not be surprised if Northern subspecies of wolf drove the primitive dog-type wolf to extinction. There was probably little interchange of genes between the two (sub)species, but perhaps just enough to make our genetics studies a bit difficult in terms of finding the origin of the domestic dog. Edited by Sicilianu, May 25 2014, 11:56 PM.
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| Cape Leopard | May 26 2014, 02:25 AM Post #4 |
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Heterotrophic Organism
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Great observation Sicilianu! |
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| MightyKharza | May 26 2014, 05:09 PM Post #5 |
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Omnivore
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Report submitted for Rufford Small Grants for nature conservation project by Anagaw Atickem, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, University of Oslo Email: anagawam@gmail.com The distribution pattern of the African wolf Canis lupus lupaster and confused sympatric canids taxonomy in Ethiopia African wolf was first discovered in 2011 at two localities of Ethiopian highlands (Rueness et al., 2011). IUCN provide conservation status for wide range of mammals which has an important implication for prioritizing conservation efforts. Cryptic species however challenged the current conservation strategy. Cryptic species that remains undetected confused with some of the widely distributed species potentially can vanish without a significant effort of conservation. Confused with a Golden jackal Canis aureus for instance, the African wolf is categorized as one of the List concern species by IUCN (Jhala and Moehlman, 2008). With this study, we determine the distribution of the African wolf at larger geographic range of Ethiopia. As taxonomies based on morphological traits alone potentially can lead to misleading guides to phylogenetic distinctions (Avise, 1989), we used molecular genetics study on different canids in Ethiopia. Our study was based on noninvasive technique. Since fecal samples of smaller cats including serval cat (Leptailurus serval) are undistinguishable from the Africa wolf pellet samples, we collected many carnivore samples that we suspect to be from African wolf. In our first objective on the distribution of African wolf, we found the species in all of our survey areas, from lowland as low as 1400 masl from Ethiopian rift valley to 3800 masl in the Ethiopian highland . From our 32 confirmed cases of canids, we did not get a single individual that belongs to the common jackal. In the second African wolf paper published in 2012 (Gaubert et al., 2012), the authors provide photographs of the African wolf and golden jackal at Fig 5 in the paper. No genetic evidence is presented for the golden jackal, and their argument is solely based on the morphological features. In our research, the African wolf is found in a very striking morphological appearance hard to tell from the morphological features and coloration. While we could not take a photograph of the African wolf from a distance which needs a professional camera, we observed a striking cooler and size variations between African wolf across the Ethiopian range varied from reddish to white and blackish colors. We get an opportunity for getting a DNA samples from two photographed individuals of African wolf, one from Egypt and the other from Ethiopia in the rift valley, with a totally different phenotypic appearance. The phenotypic appearance presented by (Gaubert et al., 2012; Fig 5 in the paper) as African wolf and golden jackal, are quite similar when compared to the two individuals documented in this study. Unless genetic evidences are provided, confirming the presence of Golden jackal in Africa is still in a question mark. The use of morphological features including muzzle shape and tail length and color variations as a taxonomy base of African canids in general is flawed. In the Bale mounains, we found that those which were considered as black backed jackal are in fact a striped jackal Canis adustus. Published on blog by Mammal watiching.com blog “Very Strange Canid in Bale Mountains Ethiopia ” http://mammalwatching.wordpress.com/2012/09/11/very-strange-canid-in-bale-mountains-ethiopia-rfi/ the authors posted a photograph which has controversial phenotypic appearance. We get an opportunity to get pellet samples from individual with a similar physical appearance. We found this animal to be striped jackal from the mitochondrial DNA and my collaborator is working on further work on the nuclear DNA. The phenotypic appearance of our striped jackal in Jima and Bale mountains his however very different from the individual presented in the photograph. All our samples of striped jackal are however grouped together with the striped jackal in Guinea and Benin reported by (Gaubert et al., 2012). It is however distant from the striped jackal in Kenya (Wayne et al., 1997). Weather Cryptic canid do exist in Kenya or uncertainties in gene bank lead this variations needs to be investigated further. With this research, I acknowledge the lack of Black backed jackal (Canis mesomelas) sample. http://www.google.no/imgres?imgurl=http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2659/4130626569_c748ee7dc0_o.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.flickr.com/photos/johndale/4130626569/&h=1147&w=1721&sz=40&tbnid=yD-dmhRxbZctQM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=135&zoom=1&usg=__a4MtvnZ3kI4pDlHiRVEQTxmEOLc=&docid=Ztg9D6PsvxdGLM&itg=1&sa=X&ei=ngV8UpzxHoHXswb_vYCgCw&ved=0CDUQ9QEwAw The hunts on pellet samples on these animals are still going on the lowlands of Ethiopia in rift valley and Nechisar National Park. With this research, we focused on the highlands areas and we missed this lowland canid. In Guassa Mountains, our short field work reveals the African wolf primarily based on the rodents like that of the Ethiopian wolf. However, because African wolf is very wide spread across the regions where rodent density is very low, like that of the rift valley near to the Abijatta-Shalla National Park, it is likely that the species feed on wide range of food items that needs further investigation. References: Gaubert, P., Bloch C., Benyacou S., Abdelhamid A., Pagani P., Adeyemi C., Djagoun M.S., Couloux A. , Dufour S. (2012). Reviving the African Wolf Canis lupus lupaster in North and West Africa: A Mitochondrial Lineage Ranging More than 6,000 km Wide. PLoS ONE 7(8): e42740. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0042740. Jhala, Y.V. and Moehlman, P.D. 2008. Canis aureus. In: IUCN 2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.1. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 05 November 2013. Rueness, Eli Knispel; Asmyhr, Maria Gulbrandsen; Sillero-Zubiri, Claudio; Macdonald, David W.; Bekele, Afework; Anagaw Atickem & Stenseth, Nils Chr. (2011). The cryptic African wolf: Canis aureus lupaster is not a golden jackal and is not endemic to Egypt. PLOS ONE e16385:1–5. Wayne RK, Geffen E, Girman DJ, Koepfli KP, Lau LM, et al. (1997). Molecular systematics of the Canidae. Systematic Biology 46:622–653. |
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| Sicilianu | May 26 2014, 10:47 PM Post #6 |
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Omnivore
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I hope they publish their findings soon. I would love to see images of the phenotypes of the different canids. I had actually seen a picture of the unknown canid that was posted on the mammalwatching website. I thought it was side-striped because of the way the face appeared, even though it had no noticeable side-stripe. ![]() I do find it somewhat hard to believe that their may not be any golden jackals in Africa, unless the author meant Ethiopia. I think there are golden jackals, but perhaps they are excluded by the side-striped and African wolf (and Ethiopian wolf for that matter) in Ethiopia. All of this really goes to show that Canis as a genus (and Lycaon and Cuon) is in desparate need of an intensive phylogeographic study for each "species." Another study certainly needs to be done on the Indian and Himalayan wolves, which seem to have been largely ignored since that original study a few years ago. |
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| Mesopredator | Feb 13 2018, 05:48 PM Post #7 |
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Disaster taxa
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Good work. I hope we can have more discussions about canids in the future. It is amazing that we found a new species. |
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| K9 Bite | Feb 14 2018, 01:36 AM Post #8 |
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Herbivore
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Intresting observation! It's always a shock to other people that the wolves that gave rise to dogs were most likely not the huge northern wolves you see killing bison in canada but rather the small sub species that scavenge in the hot sun. |
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