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The Sardinian dhole (''Cynotherium sardous''), also known as the Sardinian fox, was an endemic insular canid, that occurred on the Mediterranean islands of Sardinia (which currently belongs to Italy) and Corsica (which currently belongs to France). Its range was because both Sardinia and Corsica were joined for much of the Pleistocene. It became extinct when humans began to settle on the island. Its scientific name means "Sardinian dog-beast". When the ancestor of this canid, a species of the wolf-sized ''Xenocyon'', became confined to the island, its diet became limited to small and fast prey, such as rodents and rabbits. This lack of large prey caused the Sardinian dhole to evolve into a small sized (perhaps 10kg) canid. This view of ''Cynotherium'' as a predator specializing in small, fast prey is supported by an examination of the animal's anatomy. The evolution of short, powerful limbs, a low neck carriage and increased head and neck mobility suggests an animal well suited for stalking and then quickly pouncing on or running down small prey.〔〔 (PDF copy )〕 Despite its commonly used name, ''Cynotherium sardous'' is not always listed as a relative of the modern dhole. Recent studies consider the Sardinian dhole a part of the tribe Canini and a relative of the genus ''Lycaon'', which includes the African wild dog and the extinct African hunting dog.〔Lyras, G. & van der Geer, A. 2006. Adaptations of the Pleistocene island canid Cynotherium sardous (Sardinia, Italy) for hunting small prey. Cranium 23, 51-60.〕 As mentioned earlier, some species of ''Xenocyon'' thought to be the ancestor of ''Cynotherium''.〔 Another hypothesis posits that the Sardinian dhole is derived from a late population of ''Canis arnensis'' (or ''Canis mosbachensis''). ==See also== * List of extinct animals of Europe * Insular dwarfism * Corsican red deer 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sardinian dhole」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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