Sort Out The Dog Family

You sent your dog to obedience school--and he came home with homework? He's making a family tree to find his closest relations in the animal world. Read the directions below to help him add his last four relatives.

DIRECTIONS
Scientists use animals' traits to classify them--group them according to how alike they are. The diagram below shows how scientists classify many dog relatives. Here's how it works:

There are five different groups on the chart. Starting from the bottom, the groups are subspecies, species, genus, family, and order.
As you move up the chart, animals in a group share fewer and fewer traits. Animals in the same subspecies or species have a lot of the same traits. Animals that are part of the same order share only a few traits.
If a line goes from one group to another, then the lower group is part of the upper group. That means animals in the lower groups have the traits of animals in the upper group. For example, all animals on this diagram have carnivore traits--trace the lines to prove it!
The missing animals at right belong in the yellow squares on the diagram. Use the clues below and the traits on the diagram to decide where each animal belongs. Write the animal's number in the correct square. On a separate piece of paper, answer the questions below.

CLUES
Wolves share more traits with coyotes than with kit foxes.
Pups of bush dogs and red foxes don't eat food that's been vomited up.
Red foxes like to eat berries.
Of all the animals in the Canis genus, domestic dogs and wolves are most alike.

QUESTIONS

Which species is cat-like when it is happy?
Why do carnivores need sharp teeth?
A fennec's traits help it survive in desert heat. How?
Missing Animals
Species: 1. Red Fox

Species: 2. Bush Dog

Species: 3. Black-Backed Jackal

Species: 4. Wolf

Order: Carnivore (CAR-nih-vore)
Traits: * eat meat
* four pointed teeth
* sharp hearing, smell, and vision

Family: Canidae (CAN-ih-day)
Traits: * walk on their toes
* live in packs
* smell and hearing are sharper than vision

A Species:

Genus: Lycaon (LIE-kay-on)
Traits: * 48 teeth
* spotted fur
* run up to 65 kph (40 mph)

Species: African Wild Dog

Genus: Speothus (SPEE-oth-iss)
Traits: * joined toes for easy swimming
* short legs
* squeal

B Species:

Species: Vulpes (VULL-pez)
Traits: * smallest Canidae
* usually hunt alone
* eat meat and fruit

Species: Kit Fox
Traits: * live in the desert
* hunt at night
* purr when content

C Species:

Genus: Canis (CAY-nis)
Traits: * vomit up food to feed pups
* hunt in packs
* 42 teeth

Genus: Coyote
Traits: * pointed muzzle
* fastest-running Canis
* eat dead animals they find (also hunt)

D Species:

Species: Cuon (kwan)
Traits: * live in mountains
* jump up to 6 m (18 ft)
* whistle and cluck like a chicken

Species: Dhole (dole)

Subspecies: Domestic Dog
Traits: * have up to nine pups in a litter
* obey a "master"
* include more than 400 breeds

Genus: Fennecus (FEN-ik-us)
Traits: * live in desert
* fur on bottoms of feet
* large ears radiate (give off) body heat

Species: Fennec

By: Gorrell, Carin, Finton, Nancy, Scholastic SuperScience