Falkland island Fox

Art

goal for the week 15.5 hrs

Today

work on the sphinx

Animal

While I'm on depressing island wildlife. The Falkland island Fox (Dusicyon australis) was the only native land mammal of the Falkland islands and the only member of its genus, it is also the first canine driven to extinction in modern times. It is thought that it may be related to the coyote and perhaps even could have been the coyote's progenitor. There are many theories as to how it got to the Falkland islands. They were noted to be tame and curious which may be why its genus name Dusicyon means "foolish dog" it was not uncommon for trappers to lure them close with a piece of meat and then stab them to death. Settlers regarded them as a threat to their sheep and began a campaign of poisoning and trapping which wiped all of them out. The last Falkland island fox was shot in 1876, they were completely extinct 169 years after their initial discovery.