Historical and current range of the Near Threatened maned wolf Chrysocyon brachyurus in South America D iego Q ueirolo ,J os E ´ Roberto M oreira ,L uc I ´ A S oler ,L ouise H.E mmons , F l A ´ vio H.G. R odrigues ,A ndr E ´ s A.P autasso ,J os E ´ Luis C artes and V al E ´ ria S alvatori Abstract The Near Threatened maned wolf Chrysocyon brachyurus is a South American endemic canid occurring mainly in grassland-dominated regions. We compiled and mapped recent and historical data to compare the species’ present and historical distributions and propose hypothe- ses for range shifts. There has been recent range expansion in eastern Brazil associated with the deforestation of the Atlantic Forest and conversion of habitat to grasslands for cattle range. The northern, north-eastern and eastern sectors of the species’ range have not yet experienced significant modifications, and the species persists in central Brazil, northern and eastern Bolivia, and south-eastern Peru. The largest range contractions have occurred at the species’ southern limits but maned wolves are still present in north- eastern, central and eastern Argentina, and there are a few records of the species’ occurence from Uruguay and north- eastern and southern Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. Historically the species occupied nearly all of Rio Grande do Sul, Uruguay and south to at least the 38th parallel in Argentina. The probable causes of the southern range loss are intense anthropogenic pressure combined with limiting abiotic factors such as temperature and humidity. We highlight the need to revise the view of how habitat modifications are influencing the range of C. brachyurus so as to improve and coordinate range-wide conservation strategies. Keywords Biogeography, canid, Chrysocyon brachyurus, historical distribution, maned wolf, range, South America Introduction T he maned wolf Chrysocyon brachyurus is a monotypic South American endemic that has been recorded almost exclusively in the cerrado, chaco and pampas regions (Cabrera & Willink, 1973; Langguth, 1975; Dietz, 1985), which are open habitats characterized by grasslands and scrublands with sparse trees, dissected by watercourses bordered by gallery forests. Because of the species’ shy behaviour and nocturnal/crepuscular activity there are few records of its distribution in the recent past (Prevosti et al., 2004), and data about its current distribution are scarce (Soler et al., 2005). The historical distribution is known mainly from accounts of 18th and 19th century expeditions (Moreno, 1997), and from data compiled by Casamiquela (1975), Fe ´rnandez (1974–1976), Prevosti et al. (2004), Rodden et al (2004) and Chebez (2008). The present range of C. brachyurus is centred on central Brazil, Paraguay and the lowlands of eastern Bolivia (Dietz, 1985; Rumiz & Sainz, 2002), where the species apparently occurs at relatively high and stable densities (Romero Martı ´nez, 1996; Neris et al., 2002; Rodden et al., 2004). However, in marginal areas of its range, such as northern and north-eastern Argentina, Uruguay and the extreme south of Brazil, densities seem to be low or at least there are few records of the species’ occurrence (Beccaceci, 1991; Rumiz & Sainz, 2002; Indrusiak & Eizirik, 2003; Rodden et al., 2004). In Argentina single individuals are regularly recorded (Beccaceci, 1993; Jayat et al., 1999; Richard et al., 1999; Pautasso, 2007) but there have been few studies of popula- tions (Soler et al., 2005) either there or in southern Brazil (Indrusiak & Eizirik, 2003). In Uruguay one individual was captured in 1989 (Mones & Olazarri, 1990) and a second in 2006 but it is unknown whether a breeding population occurs in the country. The maned wolf is categorized as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List (Rodden et al., 2008) and the species is included by most range countries on their own Red Lists of threatened species (DPNyVS & FMB, 1998; Flores & Miranda, 2003; Barquez et al., 2006; Chiarello et al., 2008; DIEGO QUEIROLO (Corresponding author) Centro Universitario de Rivera, Universidad de la Repu ´blica, Ituzaingo ´ 667, Rivera, Uruguay. E-mail diqueirolo@yahoo.com.br JOSE ´ ROBERTO MOREIRA Centro Nacional de Pesquisa de Recursos Gene ´ticos e Biotecnologia, Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecua ´ria, Brasilia, DF, Brazil LUCI ´ A SOLER Ca ´tedra de Fisiologı ´a Animal, DBByF, Universidad Nacional del Sur, Bahı ´a Blanca, and Asociacio ´n Huellas, Argentina LOUISE H. EMMONS Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, USA FLA ´ VIO H.G. RODRIGUES Departamento de Biologia Geral, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil, and Associaça ˜o para Conservaça ˜o dos Carnı ´voros Neotropicais—Pro ´-Carnı ´voros, Brazil ANDRE ´ S A. PAUTASSO A ´ rea Zoologı ´a de Vertebrados, Museo Provincial de Ciencias Naturales ‘Florentino Ameghino’, Santa Fe, Argentina JOSE ´ LUIS CARTES Asociacio ´n Guyra Paraguay, Asuncio ´n, Paraguay VALE ´ RIA SALVATORI Istituto di Ecologia Applicata, Rome, Italy Received 11 November 2009. Revision requested 25 January 2010. Accepted 9 March 2010. ª 2011 Fauna & Flora International, Oryx, 45(2), 296–303 doi:10.1017/S0030605310000372