Short-eared dog
species of canid
The short-eared dog (Atelocynus microtis), also known as the small-eared dog, short-eared fox or small eared zorro, is an elusive canid species endemic to the Amazonian basin. This is the only species assigned to the genus Atelocynus.
Other names
The short-eared dog has many names in the local languages where it is endemic, including cachorro-do-mato-de-orelha-curta in Portuguese, zorro de oreja corta ("short-ear fox") in Spanish, nomensarixi in Chiquitano, uálaca in Yucuna, cuachi yaguar in Guarayu, quinamco in Mooré, and achuj in Ninam and Mosetén.
Other common names in Spanish include zorro ojizarco ("blue-eyed fox"), zorro sabanero ("savannah fox"), and zorro negro ("black fox").
Evolution and systematics
In 2022, a study sequenced the genomes of the living members of the subtribe Cerdocyonina, which indicates that they commenced diversifying from a common ancestor between 3.9—3.5 million years ago. This finding is consistent with the ancestor arriving in South America from Central America through the Isthmus of Panama and then entering into eastern South America. The subtribe then expanded to occupy the entire continent.
After the formation of the Isthmus of Panama in the latter part the Tertiary (about 2.5 million years ago in the Pliocene), canids 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. Although it has a superficial resemblance to the bush dog, the short-eared dog's closest living relative is the crab-eating fox.
“Short-eared dog” enters the record as species of canid. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Short-eared, species and canid can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 13, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q331850. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2022.
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This entry incorporates text from “Short-eared dog” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.