Canis gezi, a poorly known small wolf from the Ensenadan of South America, appears to have given rise to Canis nehringi, a Lujanian species from Argentina.

[1] Canis dirus made its appearance in South America in the late Pleistocene, and seems to have been restricted to the north and west coasts.

[3]: 174–5  Some researchers have proposed that Canis dirus may have originated in South America.

[4]: 116 [5][6] In 1988, a study of these two large South American wolves described them with Canis gezi found in South American Ensenadan deposits that relate to the North American late Blancan and Irvingtonian, and Canis nehringi found in South American Lujanian deposits of the Lujan Formation that relate to the Late Pleistocene.

[3]: 148 In 2010, a study found that DNA analysis and the dental characteristics of South America hypercanivorous canids showed a "South American clade" and the Canis clade.