# Another Evolution Question: The fate of the falkland Islands Wolf **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 26, 2015, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-evolution-question-the-fate-of-the-falkland-islands-wolf/738623 "2015-11-26T12:54:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![botsgotme](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@botsgotme](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/botsgotme)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-evolution-question-the-fate-of-the-falkland-islands-wolf/738623/1 "2015-11-26T12:54:56Z")
When the first Europeans colonized the Falkland Islands, they found a local canine, which they thought was a wolf. These animals were hunted to extinction-the last one was killed around 1880. Since the islands are very far from the main land, scientists believe that the wolves migrated across on a land bridge which existed at the height of the last Ice Age (about 11,000 years ago). My question:no such animal exists in Patagonia today-is it possible that this animal actually evolved on the islands? I have been searching, and don’t see any reference to such an animal in South America. ---
**Author:** ![upend](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b3f665/32.png) [@upend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/upend)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-evolution-question-the-fate-of-the-falkland-islands-wolf/738623/2 "2015-11-26T13:55:43Z")
there’s a fairly good overview here… [http://www.sci-news.com/biology/article00921.html](http://www.sci-news.com/biology/article00921.html) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-evolution-question-the-fate-of-the-falkland-islands-wolf/738623/3 "2015-11-26T15:20:15Z")
Well, evolved from what? It’s not like you’d go all the way from protoplasmal primordial atomic globule to something wolf-like all on that island. At some point _some_ ancestor had to have made it over from the mainland, and that ancestor would probably have been relatively wolf-like. ---
**Author:** ![botsgotme](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@botsgotme](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/botsgotme)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-evolution-question-the-fate-of-the-falkland-islands-wolf/738623/4 "2015-11-26T15:54:35Z")
My question really has two parts: -what happened to the mainland (Falklands) wolves? -a wolf is a large predator-what did it subsist on, on those barren islands? Aside from birds, no large land mammals lived there, until humans brought sheep, goats and cattle (in the 1700s)? I can find no reference to a a mainland species-anybody know more? it could be fun to clone the animal-wonder if enough DNA exists to do this? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-evolution-question-the-fate-of-the-falkland-islands-wolf/738623/5 "2015-11-26T16:28:03Z")
The term “wolf” was often used for any canid-like animal that explorers found, so don’t get too hung up on it. This guys is not a true wolf-- not even a member of the Genus _Canis_. Similarly, the “maned wolf” of South America is not a true wolf. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-evolution-question-the-fate-of-the-falkland-islands-wolf/738623/6 "2015-11-26T16:45:35Z")
> [@botsgotme](#): > > My question really has two parts: > -what happened to the mainland (Falklands) wolves? > -a wolf is a large predator-what did it subsist on, on those barren islands? Aside from birds, no large land mammals lived there, until humans brought sheep, goats and cattle (in the 1700s)? > I can find no reference to a a mainland species-anybody know more? > it could be fun to clone the animal-wonder if enough DNA exists to do this? There are sea lions and elephant seals, the young would have made a sizable meal. And among the birds are penguins, decent sized prey which would have provided a bonanza of eggs and young in the spring. ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-evolution-question-the-fate-of-the-falkland-islands-wolf/738623/7 "2015-11-26T16:47:29Z")
You are aware of Wikipedia right? [Falkland Islands wolf - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falkland_Islands_wolf) > [@](#): > > in 2009, a cladistic analysis of DNA identified the Falkland Island wolf’s closest living relative as the maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus)—an unusually long-legged, fox-like South American canid, from which it separated about 6.7 million years ago. The Maned wolf ([Maned wolf - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maned_wolf)) stands about 30" tall and 30" long (then add a tail). The diet is small rodents, birds and vegetable material. The Falkland Island wolf was likely smaller and likely had a diet focused on sea birds.