Mbwa

Mbwa

Mbwa-mwitu wa Ulaya

Uainishaji wa kisayansi

Himaya:	Animalia (Wanyama)
Faila:	Chordata (Wanyama wenye ugwe wa neva mgongoni)
Nusufaila:	Vertebrata (Wanyama wenye uti wa mgongo)
Ngeli:	Mammalia (Wanyama wenye viwele)
Oda:	Carnivora (Wanyama mbua)
Nusuoda:	Caniformia (Wanyama kama mbwa)
Familia:	Canidae (Wanyama walio na mnasaba na mbwa)
Jenasi:	Atelocynus Cabrera, 1940 Canis Linnaeus, 1758 Cerdocyon C.E.H. Smith, 1839 Chrysocyon C.E.H. Smith, 1839 Cuon Hodgson, 1838 Lycalopex Burmeister, 1854 Lycaon Brookes, 1827 Nyctereutes Temminck, 1839 Otocyon Müller, 1836 Speothos Lund, 1839 Urocyon Baird, 1857 Vulpes Frisch, 1775

Mbwa ni wanyama mbua wa familia Canidae, lakini takriban spishi zote za Afrika zinaitwa bweha au mbweha.

Ukubwa wa spishi za mwitu unatofautiana kutoka 24 sm (fenek) mpaka 2 m (mbwa-mwitu wa Ulaya (kadiri ya vipimo kwa mbwa-kaya ni 9.5-250 sm).

Wanyama hawa wana pua ndefu na miguu mirefu na mkia wa manywele. Rangi yao ni kijivu, kahawia au hudhurungi; kwa kawaida tumbo ni jeupe.

Spishi nyingine zinatokea misitu na nyingine zinatokea maeneo wazi. Mbwa hukamata mawindo aina yo yote lakini ukubwa wa mawindo unafuatana na ukubwa wa spishi ya mbwa. Hata hivyo, spishi zinazoishi kwa makundi, kama mbwa-mwitu wa Afrika, zinaweza kukamata windo kubwa sana kuliko wao wenyewe. Spishi kadhaa hufugwa, hususan mbwa-kaya.

Spishi za Afrika [hariri]

Canis adustus, Bweha Miraba (Side-striped Jackal)
Canis aureus, Bweha Dhahabu au Bweha wa Mbuga (Common or Golden Jackal)
- Canis a. algirensis, Bweha Kaskazi (Algerian Jackal)
- Canis a. anthus, Bweha wa Senegali (Senegalese Jackal)
- Canis a. bea, Bweha Mashariki (Serengeti Jackal)
- Canis a. lupaster, Bweha wa Misri (Egyptian Jackal)
- Canis a. riparius, Bweha Mdogo (Dwarf Jackal)
- Canis a. soudanicus, Bweha wa Sudani (Variegated Jackal)
Canis lupus, Mbwa-mwitu wa Ulaya (Grey Wolf)
- Canis l. familiaris, Mbwa-kaya Domestic Dog)
- Canis l. lupaster, Mbwa-mwitu wa Misri Egyptian Wof)
Canis mesomelas, Bweha Mgongo-mweusi au Bweha Shaba (Black-backed Jackal)
Canis simensis, Mbwa-mwitu Habeshi (Ethiopian Wolf, Abyssinian Wolf, Simien Fox au Simien Jackal)
Lycaon pictus, Mbwa-mwitu wa Afrika (African Wild Dog au African Hunting Dog)
Otocyon megalotis, Bweha Masikio (Bat-eared Fox)
Vulpes cana, Bweha wa Blanford (Blanford's Fox)
Vulpes chama, Bweha Kusi (Cape Fox)
Vulpes pallida, Bweha wa Saheli (Pale Fox)
Vulpes rueppelli, Bweha wa Rüppell (Rüppell's Fox)
Vulpes zerda, Fenek au Bweha-jangwa (Fennec Fox)

Spishi za mabara mengine [hariri]

Atelocynus microtis (Short-eared Dog)
Canis aureus (Common or Golden Jackal)
- Canis a. aureus (Common Jackal)
- Canis a. cruesemanni ( Siamese Jackal)
- Canis a. ecsedensis (Balkan Jackal)
- Canis a. indicus (Indian Jackal)
- Canis a. moreoticus (European Jackal)
- Canis a. naria ( Sri Lankan Jackal)
- Canis a. syriacus (Syrian Jackal)
Canis latrans (Coyote au Prairie Wolf)
Canis lupus (Grey Wolf)
- Canis lupus familiaris (Domestic Dog)
- Canis lupus dingo (Dingo) – pengine C. dingo
- Canis lupus hallstromi (New Guinea Singing Dog)
Cerdocyon thous (Crab-eating Fox)
Chrysocyon brachyurus (Maned Wolf)
Cuon alpinus (Dhole au Asian Wild Dog)
Dusicyon australis (Falkland Island Wolf) imekwisha sasa
Lycalopex culpaeus (Culpeo)
Lycalopex fulvipes (Darwin's Fox)
Lycalopex griseus (Argentine Grey Fox)
Lycalopex gymnocercus (Pampas Fox)
Lycalopex sechurae (Sechura Fox)
Lycalopex vetulus (Hoary Fox)
Nyctereutes procyonoides (Raccoon Dog)
Speothos venaticus (Bush Dog)
Urocyon cinereoargenteus (Grey Fox)
Urocyon littoralis (Island Fox)
Urocyon sp. nov. (Cozumel Fox)
Vulpes bengalensis (Bengal Fox)
Vulpes corsac (Corsac Fox)
Vulpes ferrilata (Tibetan Sand Fox)
Vulpes lagopus (Arctic Fox) – pengine Alopex lagopus
Vulpes macrotis (Kit Fox)
Vulpes velox (Swift Fox)
Vulpes vulpes (Red Fox)