New African wolf discovered

Science 28 Jan 11 Scientists studying genetic evidence have discovered a new species of wolf living in Africa. The researchers have proved that the mysterious animal, known as the 'Egyptian jackal' and often confused with the golden jackal, is not a sub-species of jackal but a grey wolf. The discovery, by a team from Oxford University's Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), the University of Oslo, and Addis Ababa University, shows that grey wolves reached Africa around 3 million years ago before spreading throughout the northern hemisphere. The new wolf is a relative of the Holarctic grey wolf, the Indian wolf and the Himalayan wolf. A report of the research appears this week in the journal PLoS One . Professor David Macdonald, an author of the paper and Director of Oxford University's WildCRU, said: 'A wolf in Africa is not only important conservation news, but raises fascinating biological questions about how the new African wolf evolved and lived alongside not only the real golden jackals but also the vanishingly rare Ethiopian wolf, which is a very different species with which the new discovery should not be confused.' Professor Claudio Sillero, also of the WildCRU and Chair of the IUCN's Canid Specialist Group, who has worked in Ethiopia for more than two decades, said: 'This discovery contributes to our understanding of the biogeography of Afroalpine fauna, an assemblage of species with African and Eurasian ancestry which evolved in the relative isolation of the highlands of the Horn of Africa.