The giraffe-legged wolf of South American grasslands — an unmistakable canid with improbably long legs, reddish-orange fur, a black mane, and large ears; the maned wolf is not closely related to wolves or foxes, being the sole member of its genus; it is an omnivore that eats more fruit than meat, and the wolf-apple (lobeira fruit) forms a large part of its diet.
Not a wolf, not a fox
The maned wolf’s taxonomic position is unusual — it is the only living species in the genus Chrysocyon, placed on a long evolutionary branch with no close living relatives. DNA analysis suggests its closest relatives are the bush dog and the extinct Falkland Islands wolf. It is sometimes described as “a fox on stilts” — the long legs are an adaptation for seeing over tall cerrado grass, not for speed.
The wolf-apple
An unusually large proportion of the maned wolf’s diet is plant material — particularly a fruit called lobeira or wolf-apple (Solanum lycocarpum), which it eats year-round. The maned wolf’s relationship with this plant is mutualistic: the wolf disperses the seeds in its dung, and the fruit provides essential nutrition. Studies suggest lobeira may also act as a natural antihelminthic, helping the wolf manage intestinal parasites.
Scent marking
Maned wolves have an extraordinarily powerful and distinctive scent — their urine smells strongly of cannabis, an odour produced by a compound called 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline. The scent is used for territory marking and is strong enough to cause alarm at zoos where keepers have occasionally reported the smell to authorities. Mated pairs maintain large overlapping territories but spend little time together, meeting mainly during the breeding season.
Near threatened
The maned wolf is listed as Near Threatened, primarily due to habitat loss from agricultural expansion into the cerrado biome. It is also killed by vehicles, hunted, and persecuted as a chicken thief. Conservation programmes in Brazil focus on maintaining cerrado habitat and reducing road mortality, which kills several hundred wolves annually.