The Honshū wolf also known as the Japanese wolf (Canis lupus hodophilax) – an extinct subspecies of the gray wolf. It was the last descendant of the Pleistocene gray wolf and the ancestor of Japanese dog breeds. It was the most closely related to dogs out of all modern wolves. Honshū wolf was one of the two gray wolf subspecies once living in Japan, with the other being the Hokkaidō wolf.
Apperance[]
The Japanese wolf had rusty-brown, short and smooth fur. In winter it became lighter. Its muzzle, ears and paws were also short. It was much smaller than the Hokkaidō wolf - Japanese wolf weighted about 15 kg, grew to 56-58 cm at the withers, the body length was 95-114 cm, and the tail was about 30 cm.
Range and habitat[]
Japanese wolves inhabited mountains of the Honshū, Shikoku and Kyūshū islands.
Diet[]
Japanese wolf's prey included deer, wild boars, and macaques.
The Honshū wolf is thought to have become extinct due to a combination of rabies, which was first reported in Kyūshū and Shikoku in 1732, and human eradication. The last known specimen died in 1905, in Nara Prefecture.Some interpretations of the Honshū wolf's extinction stress the change in local perceptions of the animal: rabies-induced aggression and deforestation of the wolf's habitat forced them into conflict with humans, and this led to them being targeted by farmers.There are currently eight known pelts and five stuffed specimens of the Japanese wolf in existence. One stuffed specimen is in the Netherlands, three are in Japan, and the animal caught in 1905 is kept in the British Museum. Owing to its small size (the Honshū wolf is the smallest known variety of wolf, probably due toallopatric speciation /island dwarfing) the Honshū wolf's classification as a subspecies of the gray wolf is disputed.Honshu wolves were abundant in Japan until 1732 when rabies was introduced to the island. It was rabies, deforestation of the wolf's habitat, and and conflict with humans that led to their extinction. The last specimen was officially killed in 1905 in Nara Prefecture on Honshu Island, Japan. Although there have been many sightings claimed since then, none of them have been verified. There are five mounted specimens known of today; three in Japan, one in the Netherlands, and the last officially killed specimen in a British Museum.