Overview
- Researchers pooled 34 intensive camera‑trap surveys across lowland Bolivia and Peru to produce the largest photographic record of the short‑eared dog, totaling 594 confirmed images.
- Analysis published in Neotropical Biology and Conservation estimates density at about 15 individuals per 100 square kilometers in surveyed areas, showing the species is rarer than ocelots but more common than some larger carnivores.
- Photographs document distinctive features—large head, very small round ears, short legs, long bushy tail, dark coat ranging from reddish‑brown to blackish‑gray, and partly webbed paws—and give the clearest picture yet of its appearance.
- Camera data show the species is mainly active in daylight with a peak between roughly 6 a.m. and noon and that it is a true forest specialist favoring upland forest away from rivers, which helps explain why it was so seldom seen.
- Relative abundance was higher inside national protected areas and Indigenous territories, so the authors urge creation and effective management of protected lands and sustainable stewardship of Indigenous forests and note the study as proof of long‑term camera trapping’s value for conserving cryptic species.