Urocyon
| Urocyon[1] Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
| |
| Gray fox | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Canidae |
| Subfamily: | Caninae |
| Genus: | Urocyon Baird, 1857[2] |
| Type species | |
| Canis Virginianus | |
| Species | |
| |
Urocyon (from the Greek word for "tailed dog"[5]) is a genus of canid which includes the gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) and the island fox (Urocyon littoralis).[1] These two fox species are found in the Western Hemisphere. Whole genome sequencing indicates that Urocyon is the most basal genus of the living canids.[6] Fossils of what is believed to be the ancestor of the gray fox, Urocyon progressus, have been found in Kansas and date to the Upper Pliocene,[7] with some undescribed specimens dating even older.[8]
Extant species
| Image | Scientific name | Common name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) |
Urocyon cinereoargenteus | gray fox | Southern half of North America from southern Canada to the northern part of South America (Venezuela and Colombia), excluding the mountains of northwestern United States |
_FWS_001.jpg) |
Urocyon littoralis | Island fox | Channel Islands (off the coast of Southern California) |
Cozumel fox
The Cozumel fox is a critically endangered or extinct small gray fox found on the island of Cozumel, Mexico. The last reported sighting was in 2001, but surveys focusing on this species have not yet been carried out.[9] The Cozumel fox has not been scientifically described, is a dwarf form as is the island fox, but slightly larger being up to three-quarters the size of the gray fox. It had been isolated on the island for at least 5,000 years, and probably far longer. This would indicate that the colonization of the island of Cozumel by Urocyon predates that of humans.[10]
Extinct species
| Species name | Type specimen era and location[3] |
|---|---|
| U. citrinus | New species. Early Irvingtonian, Citris County, Florida. |
| U. galushai | New species. Late Blancan, San Simon Valley, Graham County, Arizona. |
| U. minicephalus | Martin, 1974. Late Irvingtonian, Sumter County, Florida. |
| U. progressus | Stevens, 1965. Early Blancan, Meade County, Kansas. A later review found that the material represents Urocyon, but because of the few fragments this species cannot be diagnosed.[3] |
| U. webbi | New species. Middle Hemphillian, Citrus County, Florida. |
References
- ^ a b Wozencraft, C. W. (2005). "Order Carnivora". In Wilson, D. E.; Reader, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. Vol. 1 (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 582–583. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0.
- ^ Baird, S. 1857. Reports of explorations and surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean. vol.8(1):121, 138. Vulpinae
- ^ a b c d e Tedford, Richard H.; Wang, Xiaoming; Taylor, Beryl E. (2009). "Phylogenetic Systematics of the North American Fossil Caninae (Carnivora: Canidae)" (PDF). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 325: 1–218. doi:10.1206/574.1. hdl:2246/5999.
- ^ Schreber, Johann Christian Daniel; Goldfuss, Georg August; Wagner, Andreas Johann (1774). Die Säugthiere in Abbildungen nach der Natur, mit Beschreibungen. p. 361. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.67399.( The mammals in illustrations according to nature, with descriptions)
- ^ Urocyon.
- ^ Lindblad-Toh, Kerstin; Wade, Claire M; Mikkelsen, Tarjei S.; Karlsson, Elinor K.; Jaffe, David B.; Kamal, Michael; Clamp, Michele; Chang, Jean L.; Kulbokas, Edward J.; Zody, Michael C.; Mauceli, Evan; Xie, Xiaohui; Breen, Matthew; Wayne, Robert K.; Ostrander, Elaine A.; Ponting, Chris P.; Galibert, Francis; Smith, Douglas R.; Dejong, Pieter J.; Kirkness, Ewen; Alvarez, Pablo; Biagi, Tara; Brockman, William; Butler, Jonathan; Chin, Chee-Wye; Cook, April; Cuff, James; Daly, Mark J.; Decaprio, David; et al. (2005). "Genome sequence, comparative analysis and haplotype structure of the domestic dog". Nature. 438 (#7069): 803 in 803–19. Bibcode:2005Natur.438..803L. doi:10.1038/nature04338. PMID 16341006.
- ^ Stevens, M. S. (1965). "A new species of Urocyon from the Upper Pliocene of Kansas". Journal of Mammalogy. 46: 265–269. doi:10.2307/1377846.
- ^ Prevosti, F.J., & Rincóon, A.D. (2007). "A new fossil canid assemblage from the late Pleistocene of northern South America: the canids of the Inciarte asphalt pit (Zulia, Venezuela), fossil record and biogeography". J. Paleontol. 81 (5): 1053–1065. doi:10.1666/pleo05-143.1.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Cuarón, Alfredo D.; Martinez-Morales, Miguel Angel; McFadden, Katherine W.; Valenzuela, David; Gompper, Matthew E. (2004). "The status of dwarf carnivores on Cozumel Island, Mexico". Biodiversity and Conservation. 13 (2): 317–331. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.511.2040. doi:10.1023/B:BIOC.0000006501.80472.cc.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|last-author-amp=ignored (|name-list-style=suggested) (help) - ^ Gompper, M. E.; Petrites, A. E.; Lyman, R. L. (2006). "Cozumel Island fox (Urocyon sp.) dwarfism and possible divergence history based on subfossil bones". J. Zool. 270 (1): 72–77. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.2006.00119.x.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|lastauthoramp=ignored (|name-list-style=suggested) (help)
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