The Florida black wolf (''Canis rufus floridanus''),
[ also known as the Florida wolf and the black wolf, is an extinct subspecies of red wolf][ url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JgAMbNSt8ikC&pg=PA576] that was endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
to Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
. This subspecies became extinct in 1934 due to crowding out of its habitat and hunting.
Species controversy
This wolf is recognized as a subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' in the taxonomic authority ''Mammal Species of the World
''Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference'' is a standard reference work in mammalogy giving descriptions and bibliographic data for the known species of mammals. It is now in its third edition, published in late 2005, ...
'' (2005).[
Currently, this canid is widely considered to be a subspecies of the red wolf ''Canis rufus'' and that a variation in the red wolf's coloring led to the creation of the Florida black wolf. It was believed by one author that instead of being a subspecies of the red wolf, it was actually a type of coyote.]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q846261
Endemic fauna of Florida
Extinct mammals of North America
Wolves in the United States
Subspecies of Canis lupus
Mammals described in 1912