Short-eared dog
Atelocynus microtis (Sclater, 1883)
The short-eared dog (Atelocynus microtis) is a living mammal in the family Canidae, within the order Carnivora and suborder Caniformia. It is a medium-sized animal with a representative adult body mass of 7.75 kg, and our sources report adults up to 9.5 kg.

Quick facts about the short-eared dog
The short-eared dog is a nocturnal, terrestrial carnivore. The IUCN Red List classes it as Near Threatened in its global assessment, which is not a threatened category.
- Weight
- 7.75 kg – 9.5 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 11 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Carnivoresrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 11.9 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- Not recorded
- Young per litter or clutch
- Not recorded
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Near Threatened (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the short-eared dog
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.


Where does the short-eared dog live?
Not recorded
What is the short-eared dog?
The short-eared dog (Atelocynus microtis), also known as the small-eared dog, short-eared fox or small eared zorro, is an elusive canid species endemic to the Amazonian basin. This is the only species assigned to the genus Atelocynus.
From the Wikipedia article “Short-eared dog” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Short-eared_dog&oldid=1383912992), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the short-eared dog endangered?
The short-eared dog is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List: it is close to qualifying as threatened.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Near Threatened species.
How is the short-eared dog classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderCarnivora
- familyCanidae
- genusAtelocynus
- SpeciesAtelocynus microtis (Sclater, 1883)
Synonyms Atelocynus microtis microtis, Atelocynus microtis sclateri, Canis macrotis, Canis microtis, Dusicyon microtis
Other names and names in other languages (42)
- Short-eared foxEnglish
- Short-eared foxEnglish
- Small eared zorroEnglish
- Small-eared dogEnglish
- Small-eared dogEnglish
- Small-eared zorroEnglish
- Small-eared zorroEnglish
- Small-eared zorroEnglish
- كلب صغير الأذنينArabic
- ثعلب قصير الأذنينArabic
- زورو قصير الأذنينArabic
- كلب قصير الأذنينArabic
- pes krátkouchýCzech
- Kortøret rævDanish
- KurzohrhundGerman
- KurzohrfuchsGerman
- Kurzohriger HundGerman
- Κοντόωτη ΑλεπούGreek
- Zorro NegroSpanish
- Perro de MonteSpanish
- Perro de Orejas CortasSpanish
- Zorro de oreja cortaSpanish
- Zorro OjizarcoSpanish
- SelvakoerEstonian
- amazoniankoiraFinnish
- PienikorvakettuFinnish
- Renard à petites oreillesFrench
- chien des buissons aux oreilles courtesFrench
- kisfülű kutyaHungarian
- AtelocinoItalian
- Cane dalle orecchie corteItalian
- コミミイヌJapanese
- StrandrevNorwegian Bokmål
- KortørehundNorwegian Bokmål
- KortørerevNorwegian Bokmål
- StrandhundNorwegian Bokmål
- KortoorvosDutch
- wilczek krótkouchyPolish
- Cachorro-do-mato-de-orelhas-curtasPortuguese
- Малая лисицаRussian
- Amazon KöpekgiliTurkish
- Kısa kulaklı tilkiTurkish
Relatives of the short-eared dog
Other species in the same family Canidae.

Wolf
Canis lupus

Red fox
Vulpes vulpes

Coyote
Canis latrans

Golden jackal
Canis aureus

African wild dog
Lycaon pictus

Dhole
Cuon alpinus
CompareShort-eared dog vs WolfShort-eared dog vs Red foxShort-eared dog vs CoyoteShort-eared dog vs Golden jackal
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the short-eared dog?
The short-eared dog is a mammal in the family Canidae, part of the order Carnivora and suborder Caniformia.
How heavy is the short-eared dog?
The short-eared dog has a representative adult body mass of 7.75 kg, and our sources report adults up to 9.5 kg.
What does the short-eared dog eat?
The short-eared dog is a carnivore.
Is the short-eared dog endangered?
No, it is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.
How long does the short-eared dog live?
The short-eared dog has a lifespan of 11 years, and the highest value reported by our sources is 11.9 years.
Is the short-eared dog nocturnal?
Yes, the short-eared dog is nocturnal and lives on the ground as a terrestrial animal.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Short-eared dog (Atelocynus microtis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/short-eared-dog
“Short-eared dog (Atelocynus microtis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/short-eared-dog.
@misc{short_eared_dog_2026,
title = {Short-eared dog (Atelocynus microtis)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/short-eared-dog},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}