To Be Or Not To Be A Wolf During The Pleistocene, That Is The Question

• Published in: The FASEB Journal
• Main Author: Koper, Lindsey
• Other Authors: Northern Illinois University
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2013
• Subjects: Canis lupus
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.518.5

At the end of the Pleistocene (10,000 years ago), there was a worldwide megafaunal extinction that included both large carnivores and herbivores. Before the extinction event, two kinds of wolf‐like canids lived along side each other for a couple hundred years in North America. This coexistence is well‐documented, based on the multitudes of fossil specimens of Canis dirus and Canis lupus from the Rancho La Brea tar pits in Los Angeles. The larger of the two, C. dirus , died out during the megafauna extinction whereas C. lupus still lives and thrives today as a top predator. It is not known why certain species went extinct during this time while others survived but the diet of C. dirus and C. lupus may have been responsible. According to the literature, C. dirus is more of a hypercarnivore compared to other canids or shows more characteristics of having a diet that is more exclusively meat based. C. lupus is a more generalized carnivore based on its dentition and varied diet. The difference between these carnivores can be seen in the size and shape of the carnassial teeth and the more posterior dentition. My study, analyzes the surface area of the dentition of both C. dirus and C. lupus to determine if they indeed had slightly different diets. If so, then I hypothesize that C. lupus was and is a more adaptable carnivore, allowing it to expand its diet during the megafaunal extinction, giving it advantage over the now extinct C dirus . Grant Funding Source : Northern Illinois University