The Short-Eared Dog

The Short-eared dog, also known as the Small-eared dog and the Short-eared zorro (Spanish for fox), is a wild canine species that is endemic to the Amazonian basin and is mainly a carnivore, having a majority of fish, small mammals, and also insects making up its diet. Feral dogs prove large threats to the rare population of Short-eared dogs, as they spread such diseases as canine distemper and rabies. Humans are also known as threats to the Short-eared dog, as through the destruction of tropical rainforests and other such natural animal habitat. They are considered NT (near threatened) by IUCN.

The Short-eared dog has short, rounded ears (hence its name) and its limbs are slender and short. Its features, typically the muzzle and tail, are distinctly foxlike. The fur of the Short-eared dog is usually a dark grey, but ranges to colors around reddish-grey, coffee brown, chestnut-grey to black or very nearly a navy blue and is short, thick and typically bristly. Owning to its somewhat aquatic surroundings, its paws are actually somewhat webbed. The most common other species of wild dog having webbed feet is the Bush dog.

Photograph of a Short-Eared dog

 

The Short-eared dog is known to move with more feline lightness than is commonly known among other related canid species, and as it prefers areas of the Amazon rainforest that are not commonly disturbed by humans, they are usually found in swamp forests, cloud forests, and stands of bamboo.