386 University of California Publications in Geological Sciences 



Discriminant-function Analysis 



Stock ( 1938) states that the mandible of Canis petrolei is shorter and more massive 

 than that of C. latrans orcutti, has greater convexity of the inferior margin of the 

 horizontal ramus, and shows wider and heavier teeth. The type and sole specimen 

 is a complete mandible in the Los Angeles County Museum collection, No. V5203 

 (table 3). By means of discriminant-function analysis this specimen was compared 

 with the Rancho La Brea coyote mandibles used in the D 2 test and also with a small 

 collection of Recent wolf mandibles. 



MEARNSI ^^^k C. L.OCHROPUS 



C. LEPOPHAGUS 



L. ORCUTTI 



Fig. 4. Approximate D distance for three Recent coyote 

 subspecies, the Rancho La Brea fossil coyote, and Canis 

 lepophagus from Texas. 



It was considered desirable to compare Canis petrolei with rather small wolves 

 and also with wolves of the California area. The earliest modern records indicate 

 that the wolf penetrated but slightly into California and not at all into the Los 

 Angeles region (Young and Goldman, 1944). Of the samples available two sub- 

 species were examined: C. lupus baileyi Nelson and Goldman, the Mexican Wolf 

 of the Sierra Madre, which at one time penetrated slightly into southern Arizona, 

 and C. I. fuscus Richardson, the Cascade Mountains Wolf, which ranged into 

 northern California. C. I. fuscus is a medium-sized wolf; C. I. baileyi is the smallest 

 of the North American wolves (Young and Goldman, 1944) . 



Yates and Healey (1951) warn that discriminant analysis may assign a speci- 

 men to one of two groups it is being tested against even though it really does not 

 belong to either. To eliminate this possibility they suggest testing the difference 

 between individual measurements of the specimen and each group. Canis petrolei 

 differs significantly from C. latrans orcutti only in horizontal-ramus breadth (1 

 per cent level), but differs significantly from the wolves in first lower molar length 

 and breadth and in mandibular tooth row length (5 per cent level). C. I. orcutti 

 and the wolves differ significantly at the 0.1 per cent level in all measurements. 



