Culpeo: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the culpeo lives – recorded in 5 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Lycalopex culpaeus
Group	Foxes, jackals & wild dogs
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	5 countries
Continents	South America
Class	Mammal
Order	Carnivora
Family	Canidae

Where does the culpeo live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the culpeo in 5 countries and territories across South America. Wikidata gives its range as: Chile, Argentina, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia.

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the culpeo endangered?

The culpeo’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the culpeo?

The culpeo (Lycalopex culpaeus) is a mammal in the order Carnivora and the family Canidae, genus Lycalopex. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the culpeo

The culpeo (Lycalopex culpaeus), also known as Culpeo zorro, Andean zorro, Andean fox, Paramo wolf, Andean wolf, and colpeo fox, is a species of South American fox. Despite the name, it is not in the Vulpes, but more closely related to wolves and jackals. Its appearance resembles that of foxes due to convergent evolution.

The culpeo's diet consists largely of rodents, rabbits, birds and lizards, and to a lesser extent, plant material and carrion. They may prey on Andean flamingos and baby vicuña. The culpeo sometimes attacks farm animals, among them sheep, goats and poultry; for this, it is hunted in rural Chile and Argentina. In some regions, it has become rare, but overall the species is not threatened with extinction.

The culpeo was domesticated by the Selkʼnam people of Tierra del Fuego, producing the Fuegian dog which became extinct in the late 19th or early 20th century.

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Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Culpeo (revision 1381289588), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q373558 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).