Not actually a fox or a wolf, the manned wolf exists in its own genus.
Living on open savannahs the manned wolf is unfortunately facing the loss of most of its habitat. Though we hear about the loss of the Amazon rainforest the most, all other ecosystems in South America are also under threat.
Savannah in South America are threatened even more than the rainforests.
This is perhaps why a Savannah specialist is being sighted increasingly often in the forest.
The manned wolf has been seen 22 times in the last 25 years in the rainforest, with 10 of these being in parts of the forest that have never recorded manned wolves. It is being suggested that this is an early warning system – as the rainforest is lost and the edges turn from deep rainforest into Savannahs, specialists are moving in to occupy this newly created habitat.
The manned wolf is under increasing pressure on its native Savannahs and is being pushed into increasingly close contact with humans.
What is believed by scientists, is that we should be making note of where they are no longer and not where they now are. Manned wolves are being forced into unsuitable habitat by the continued loss of their habitat.
