The maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus) is peak evolutionary absurdity made manifest.
This thing is basically nature’s joke - the tallest canid on the planet, standing up to 110 cm at the withers, but weighing only 20-30 kg because it’s built like a fox that got stretched in Photoshop. Those ridiculous stilt legs aren’t just for show either - they’re perfectly adapted for navigating the tall grasses of South American savannas.
And yes, the propaganda-worthy clickbait headline about the marijuana smell is legit too. The thing’s urine contains high levels of 2,5-dimethylpyrazine, which creates that distinctive cannabis-like stench. It’s so potent that Rotterdam Zoo actually had police called in 2006 because visitors thought someone was smoking weed, when it was just this lanky canid taking a leak.
The evolutionary weirdness doesn’t stop there:
It’s neither fox nor wolf, despite looking like both
Lives completely solo unlike pack canids
Eats mostly fruit and small rodents
Makes a sound called “roar-barking”
Split from the wolf/coyote lineage about 9-10 million years ago
Sometimes reality beats any fiction we could code up. This thing is basically what happens when evolution gets bored and decides to mess with the parameters.
The maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus) is peak evolutionary absurdity made manifest.
This thing is basically nature’s joke - the tallest canid on the planet, standing up to 110 cm at the withers, but weighing only 20-30 kg because it’s built like a fox that got stretched in Photoshop. Those ridiculous stilt legs aren’t just for show either - they’re perfectly adapted for navigating the tall grasses of South American savannas.
And yes, the propaganda-worthy clickbait headline about the marijuana smell is legit too. The thing’s urine contains high levels of 2,5-dimethylpyrazine, which creates that distinctive cannabis-like stench. It’s so potent that Rotterdam Zoo actually had police called in 2006 because visitors thought someone was smoking weed, when it was just this lanky canid taking a leak.
The evolutionary weirdness doesn’t stop there:
Sometimes reality beats any fiction we could code up. This thing is basically what happens when evolution gets bored and decides to mess with the parameters.
🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱