Physical Characteristics and Taxonomic Status of Wild Canids, Canis-Familiaris, From the Eastern Highlands of Victoria

1990 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 69 ◽  
Author(s):  
E Jones
Keyword(s):  
Canis Familiaris ◽  
Taxonomic Status ◽  
Physical Characteristics ◽  
Wild Canids ◽  
Eastern Highlands

Reproduction in Wild Canids, Canis-Familiaris, From the Eastern Highlands of Victoria

1988 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 385 ◽  
Author(s):  
E Jones ◽  
PL Stevens
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Sexual Maturity ◽  
Canis Familiaris ◽  
Seminiferous Tubules ◽  
Seasonal Breeding ◽  
Peak Period ◽  
Wild Canids ◽  
Initial Onset ◽  
Eastern Highlands ◽  
Sexually Mature

Reproduction was studied in a group of wild canids collected over four years from the eastern highlands of Victoria. While births were recorded from March to September inclusive, 78% of them took place in the winter months of June-August, with the peak occurring in July. A single breeding season each year was indicated for most, with a mean prenatal litter size of 5.5 (range 2-9). Sexually mature males were fertile throughout the year, although they exhibited a significant increase in testes weight, epididymides weight, and number of active seminiferous tubules for the months of April-June, which corresponded to the peak period of oestrus in females. The onset of first oestrus in females was variable, occurring when they were 1-4 years old, with only 36% of those less than 2 years old sexually mature. Sexual maturity in males was also variable. For animals of 10 kg (weight at initial onset of spermatogenesis) or heavier, spermatogenesis had commenced in only 63% of those less than two years old, but increased to 97% of those more than three years old. Overall this sample of canids displayed reproductive characteristics, such as a seasonal breeding season, considered typical of dingoes. However the possibility of slight changes to the original dingo breeding patterns through hybridization with domestic dogs is discussed.

A new Phoberus MacLeay species (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea: Trogidae) from the Maloti-Drakensberg Mountains of southern Africa and the Phoberus caffer species group reviewed

Zootaxa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4674 (5) ◽  
pp. 551-563
Author(s):  
WERNER P. STRÜMPHER ◽  
CLARKE H. SCHOLTZ
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
New Species ◽  
Taxonomic Status ◽  
Species Group ◽  
Species Level ◽  
Eastern Cape ◽  
Status Change ◽  
North West ◽  
First Time ◽  
Eastern Highlands

Phoberus ntlenyanae Strümpher, new species is described from Lesotho and South Africa and is placed in the southern African Phoberus caffer group of species. The P. caffer species group is redefined to include the new species. One taxonomic status change is proposed: Phoberus lilianae (Scholtz, 1980) from the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe and the eastern escarpment of South Africa is elevated to species level. Phoberus caffer (Harold, 1872) is recorded for the first time from Eastern Cape and North West Province of South Africa. A key is provided for the identification of the members of the group. Photographs illustrate the species, and a map shows their geographical distributions. [Zoobank URL: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:0CB1BAD0-F9C2-4303-B746-487BCADF0D07] 

The Identity of the Dingo III.* The Incidence of Dingoes, Dogs and Hybrids and their Coat Colours in Remote and Settled Regions of Australia

1985 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 363 ◽  
Author(s):  
AE Newsome ◽  
LK Corbett
Keyword(s):  
Canis Familiaris ◽  
Skull Morphology ◽  
Cross Breeding ◽  
Black And White ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Wild Canids ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
Canonical Analyses ◽  
South Eastern Australia

Dingoes Canis familiaris dingo, dogs C.J: familiaris, and their hybrids were classified on skull morphology as the following percentages in remote, inland Australia: 97.5,O.1 and 2.4; and in settled south-eastern Australia as 55.3, 10.8 and 33.92%. Canonical analyses of 1184 skulls from the former area and 407 from the latter indicate that mixed populations can be expected wherever close human settlement exists and wild canids remain, but that hybrids are rare in remote regions. The skulls were collected variously between 1966 and 1979; 15 equations were used to allow for differential damage to skulls. The levels of hybridization indicated by the skulls were confirmed by coat colours. The accepted colours for dingoes, (ginger, black-and-tan, and all white) were in the following percentages in inland Australia: 88.6, 3.8 and 1.9; in south-eastern Australia they were 45.9, 19.1 and 0.2%. Broken colorations, ginger with white, black or bluish patches, all black, brown or bluish, black and white, and brindle stripes, were also more numerous in the latter region (34 8%) than in the former (5.7%). Many of these variations arose in cross-breeding experiments with ginger dingoes and variously coloured domestic dogs. Historical reports recorded black dingoes but did not mention tan coloration. That may have been an oversight; if not, it may be a further indication of cross-breeding. The incidence of coat colours was not significantly different in classified dingoes, dogs and hybrids in south-eastern Australia, but ginger coats were less common in classified dogs. Those taxa and the various colorations were not more numerous near farmland than elsewhere in the forests there. A new, basic calibrating equation incorporating the length rather than the volume of auditory bulla is presented. The equation corrects also for mis-measurement of one skull variable in some of the calibrating series of dingoes. Corrigenda are presented. They do not change the general conclusions of the earlier Parts I and II of this series, but wild dingoes raised from pups in captivity did not develop foreshortened snouts as indicated earlier. The possibility remains that some may have developed wider maxillae than wild dingoes.

Assessing the taxonomic status of dingoes Canis familiaris dingo for conservation

Mammal Review ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
AMANDA E. ELLEDGE ◽  
LUKE K.-P. LEUNG ◽  
LEE R. ALLEN ◽  
KAREN FIRESTONE ◽  
ALAN N. WILTON
Keyword(s):  
Canis Familiaris ◽  
Taxonomic Status

The New Guinea singing dog: its status and scientific importance

2007 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 47 ◽  
Author(s):  
J, Koler-Matznick ◽  
B.C. Yates ◽  
S. Bulmer ◽  
I..L. Jr. Brisbin
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Context ◽  
Canis Familiaris ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Domestic Dogs ◽  
Scientific Merit ◽  
Wild Canids ◽  
Local Residents

Time is running out for the opportunity to study the New Guinea singing dog (Canis hallstromi Troughton 1957) to determine if they are a unique taxon. These wild canids are being threatened with hybridization from increasing numbers of imported domestic dogs (Canis familiaris). The controversies over their taxonomy and its status in New Guinea exist because they live in areas infrequently visited even by local residents. Thus, evidence concerning its origins, behaviour, anatomy, and phylogenetics is inadequate. The morphological, physiological, and DNA data we currently have available are from the few remaining captive representatives held in zoos and private facilities. The singing dog may be an important evolutionary link to humankind's most ancient domesticated mammal, C. familiaris, and to the Australian dingo (Canis dingo). We refute the allegation that the singing dog originated as a feral modern C. familiaris, or as hybrids of C. dingo with C. familiaris, by recounting their known history within the cultural context of New Guinea. We point out some of their distinctive characteristics, including their unique estrus cycles, and outline their potential scientific merit. We conclude by offering an alternative taxonomic hypothesis.

Hybridisation between the dingo, Canis lupus dingo, and the domestic dog, Canis lupus familiaris, in Victoria: a critical review

2009 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evan Jones
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Population Sample ◽  
Population Models ◽  
Domestic Dog ◽  
Canonical Variate ◽  
Careful Examination ◽  
Canis Lupus Familiaris ◽  
Single Group ◽  
Wild Canids ◽  
Eastern Highlands

This paper reviews two separate population models proposed for a group of wild canids inhabiting the Victorian eastern highlands and re-analyses some of the data used. The first model was based upon two studies that used eight skull measurements in a canonical variate equation. Those studies classified population samples into three separate groups consisting of dingoes, feral domestic dogs and their hybrids. The second model, based upon a later study, classified a separate and additional population sample on the basis of both coat colour and physical appearance, but also cross-referenced the classifications to their canonical scores. That study rejected the model of three separate canid groups and the ability of the canonical variate equation to differentiate ‘pure’ dingoes from other canids. Instead the population was classified as a single group of dingo-like wild canids with an increased range in the variability of their physical characteristics compared to the original dingo population. After a re-evaluation of the data from the latter study and careful examination of the limitations of the canonical variate equation, the evidence presented here supports the population model of a single group of wild canids. Theoretical considerations associated with these two population models are discussed, as are the limitations of the canonical variate equation to classify the Victorian eastern highlands and other Australian wild canid populations.

A new species of crayfish in the genus Orconectes (Decapoda: Cambaridae) from the Tennessee River Drainage with comments on and key to members of the O. juvenilis Species Complex

Zootaxa ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4208 (2) ◽  
pp. 161 ◽  
Author(s):  
CHRISTOPHER A. TAYLOR ◽  
CODY M. RHODEN ◽  
GUENTER A. SCHUSTER
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
New Species ◽  
Species Complex ◽  
Taxonomic Status ◽  
The United States ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
River Drainage ◽  
Tennessee River ◽  
Eastern Highlands ◽  
A New Species

The crayfish subgenus Procericambarus (genus Orconectes) found in the Eastern Highlands of the United States represents a rich assemblage of stream-dwelling macroinvertebrates. While the taxonomic status and distribution of its members were clarified in a previous study, newly diagnosed characters and newly collected specimens warranted a revision to previous hypotheses of Procericambarus membership in the southeastern United States. Using morphological characters, we describe herein a new species of crayfish occurring in the Tennessee River drainage of northern Alabama and southwestern Tennessee. We also provide a revised key for the identification of members of O. juvenilis Species Complex. 

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