Editing Subspecies of Canis lupus (section)

====Himalayan wolf====
{{Further|Himalayan wolf}}
{{Cladogram|align=right|title=[[Phylogenetic tree]] with timing in years for ''Canis lupus''{{refn|group=lower-alpha|name=mtdna_seq_desc|For a full set of supporting references, refer to note (a) in the phylotree at [[Evolution of the wolf#Wolf-like canids|Evolution of the wolf]]}}
|cladogram={{clade | style = font-size:85%;line-height:80%;width:375px;
 |style1=background-color:#ccccff;
 |label1=250,000
 |1={{clade
  |label1=120,000
  |1={{clade
   |label1=80,000
   |1={{clade
    |label1=31,000
    |1={{clade
     |1=[[Dog|Domestic dog]] [[File:Tibetan mastiff (transparent background).png|50 px]]
     |2=Holarctic [[Wolf|gray wolf]] [[File:Dogs, jackals, wolves, and foxes (Plate I).png|50 px]]
     }}
    |2=[[Megafaunal wolf|Late Pleistocene wolf]]† [[File:The American Museum journal (c1900-(1918)) (Aenocyon dirus) transparent.png|60 px]]
    }}
   |2=[[Indian wolf#Canis indica|Indian plains wolf]] [[File:Dogs, jackals, wolves, and foxes (Plate I).png|50 px]]
   }}
   |2=[[Himalayan wolf]] [[File:Dogs, jackals, wolves, and foxes (Plate I).png|50 px]]
  }}
 }}
}}

The Himalayan wolf is distinguished by its [[mitochondrial DNA]], which is basal to all other wolves. The taxonomic name of this wolf is disputed, with the species ''Canis himalayensis'' being proposed based on two limited DNA studies.<ref name=agga2007/><ref name=sharma2004/><ref name=shrotriya2012/> In 2017, a study of [[mitochondrial DNA]], [[X-chromosome]] (maternal lineage) markers and [[Y-chromosome]] (male lineage) markers found that the Himalayan wolf was genetically [[Basal (phylogenetics)|basal]] to the Holarctic grey wolf and has an association with the [[African golden wolf]].<ref name=werhahn2017/>

In 2019, a workshop hosted by the [[IUCN]]/SSC Canid Specialist Group noted that the Himalayan wolf's distribution included the Himalayan range and the Tibetan Plateau. The group recommends that this wolf lineage be known as the "Himalayan wolf" and classified as ''Canis lupus chanco'' until a genetic analysis of the holotypes is available.<ref name=Alvares2019/> In 2020, further research on the Himalayan wolf found that it warranted species-level recognition under the Unified Species Concept, the Differential Fitness Species Concept, and the Biological Species Concept. It was identified as an Evolutionary Significant Unit that warranted assignment onto the [[IUCN Red List]] for its protection.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1111/jbi.13824|title=Himalayan wolf distribution and admixture based on multiple genetic markers|year=2020|last1=Werhahn|first1=Geraldine|last2=Liu|first2=Yanjiang|last3=Meng|first3=Yao|last4=Cheng|first4=Chen|last5=Lu|first5=Zhi|last6=Atzeni|first6=Luciano|last7=Deng|first7=Zhixiong|last8=Kun|first8=Shi|last9=Shao|first9=Xinning|last10=Lu|first10=Qi|last11=Joshi|first11=Jyoti|last12=Man Sherchan|first12=Adarsh|last13=Karmacharya|first13=Dibesh|last14=Kumari Chaudhary|first14=Hemanta|last15=Kusi|first15=Naresh|last16=Weckworth|first16=Byron|last17=Kachel|first17=Shannon|last18=Rosen|first18=Tatjana|last19=Kubanychbekov|first19=Zairbek|last20=Karimov|first20=Khalil|last21=Kaden|first21=Jennifer|last22=Ghazali|first22=Muhammad|last23=MacDonald|first23=David W.|last24=Sillero-Zubiri|first24=Claudio|last25=Senn|first25=Helen|journal=Journal of Biogeography|volume=47|issue=6|pages=1272–1285|doi-access=free|bibcode=2020JBiog..47.1272W }}</ref>