Canis mesomelas Schreber, 1775 . Die Säugethiere, 2(14):pl. 95 (1775]; text, 3(21):370[1776], 586(1777].

TYPE LOCALITY: "Vorgebirge der guten Hofnung" [South Africa, Cape Prov., Cape of Good Hope] .

DISTRIBUTION: Africa, south of the tropical rain-forest in the west and as far north as Ethiopia and Sudan in the east; two populations, (1) Angola across to mid­Mozambique and south; and (2) Ethiopia to Tanzania and northern most Zimbabwe east of Zaire (Ginsberg and Macdonald, 1990).

SYNONYMS: achrotes Thomas, 1926; arenarum Thomas, 1926; elgonae Heller, 1914; mcmillani Heller, 1914; schmidti Noack, 1897; variegatoides Smith, 1834.