Darwin, the old ancestor of evolution, believed that domestic chickens should be of a single origin, and domestic dogs were too diverse, more likely to have multiple origins, both of which he guessed wrong.
Border Collie
Domestic chickens mainly originate from red original chickens, but mixed with the genes of gray original chickens, and domestic dogs are 100% wolf-like. About 14,000 years ago or even earlier, a group of wild wolves who liked to be close to humans were domesticated into domestic dogs, and have been dependent on each other ever since. Domestic dogs are currently considered a domesticated subspecies of the gray wolf / canis lupus familiaris, a genus of canines.
Gray Wolf
Black Wolf
Gray wolves are the flesh and blood relatives of domestic dogs, which has been confirmed by DNA analysis. They belong to the same species, share the same Latin scientific name canis lupus, and are not reproductively isolated from each other. The wolf loves the sheep, loves the madness, and the wolf loves the dog, but it is natural. You see how powerful and majestic the black wolves in North America are, in fact, according to genetic analysis, they are mixed with the blood of domestic dogs, worthy of the name of "dog hybrids".
Mongol wolf
Gray wolves are highly adaptable, distributing around the world except Antarctica and most of the islands, with a total of 46 subspecies. The size varies greatly between subspecies, with the Eurasian Timberwolf weighing up to 38.5 kg, compared to 13 kg in North Africa. In China, in addition to the tall Eurasian timber wolf in northern Xinjiang, it is mainly tibetan wolves and Mongolian wolves (probably merged into Chinese wolves), short in stature, described as obscene, and annoying at first glance.
dingo
One subspecies worth mentioning, the Dingo/canis lupus dingo, has the same appearance as the earth dog, with a large variation in body color, but is generally dominated by a typical sandy color. It should be the offspring of the feralized domestic dog, mainly distributed in Australia but not limited to Australia. On the closed Australian continent, they are at the top of the food chain, because of the skills of group hunting, Australia's native marsupial carnivores are completely incomparable, and the extinction of the thylacine may be related to the invasion of wild dogs.
Gray wolves and dogs belong to the canine family, and the canine family can be divided into 3 subfamily, the canine subfamily, the fox subfamily and the jackal subfamily, each representing a branch of the canine family. Wolves of course belong to the subfamily Canineidae, which also has 6 other species: coyotes, red wolves, side-striped jackals, Asian jackals, black-backed jackals, and steppe jackals, all of which are also brothers-in-law of dogs.
prairie wolf
Grey wolf (left) vs. coyote (right) head comparison
Comparison of the size of the North American black wolf and the coyote
First of all, the coyote/canis latrans, also known as the jungle wolf, lives in the Great Plains region of North America. This species is closely related to the gray wolf, similar in appearance, but smaller in size, weighing between 8-22 kg, with a narrower mouth and relatively long ears, and a more slender figure. They are generally hunted individually, and occasionally form small groups.
Red Wolf
Contrast between red wolves (left) and coyotes (right).
Red wolves/canis rufus, also known as red wolves, live in North America as hybrid offspring of gray wolves and coyotes that later form a stable population. Its upper body coat color is mainly cinnamon red and yellow-brown, and gray or black composition mixed color, in the winter coat color in the red element dominates, so it is called "red wolf".
Side-striped jackal
The side-striped jackal/canis adustus, also known as the striped jackal, is found mainly in eastern, western and central Africa. Smaller and slender, with shorter legs and ears than other jackals. The coat color is light gray to earthy brown, the back is bright gray, and there are white markings on the side of the body with black edges, so it is called "side stripes".
golden jackal
The Asian jackal/canis aureus, also known as the jackal, is found in eastern and western Asia and India. On July 7, 2018, China's scientific expedition team members also took photos of this species in the Jilonggou area in the southern foothills of the middle himalayas in Tibet, whether they settled here or got lost, it is still unclear. It is smaller , with long , smooth hairs , usually yellow to pale gold , almost white yellowish or brown.
Steppe Jackal
Steppe jackals/canis simensis, also known as Simon Jackal and Ethiopian Jackal, are found in the alpine regions of Ethiopia. Slender and long, it is a small canine with a distinctive reddish-brown fur, which makes it more qualified to be called "red wolf" than red wolves.
black-backed jackal
Black-backed jackals/canis mesomelas, also known as black-backed jackals, are found in the steppes of East Africa. It is smaller and resembles a dog, but has a fox-like pointed beak, large, pointed ears, black fur extending from the back of the neck to the tail, and the rest is mostly reddish-brown to tan. This jackal appears to be more common in zoos, both in Qingdao and Beijing zoos.
Jackal, also known as the Asian wild dog
As you can see, these four jackals all have other aliases for jackals, which is confusing, or it is better to use jackals. Because the canine family also has a single animal named jackal/cuon alpinus, that is, the jackal in the "jackal tiger leopard", commonly known as "jackal dog" or "red wolf". Although many people once thought that jackals were also one of the wild ancestors of domestic dogs, DNA analysis negated this.
Jackals belong to the canine subfamily Jackal genus, which is far from the canine subfamily Canine genus. There is no reproductive isolation between the various species of the canine genus, but whether there can be hybrid offspring between the canine genus and the jackal genus, and whether the hybrid offspring are fertile, I have not checked the authoritative data, and I dare not make a false assertion.