Lycalopex culpaeus (culpeo) is a South American canid distributed along the Andes from Ecuador and Peru through Bolivia and Chile to Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego, with populations also extending into western Argentina. It is the second-largest wild canid in South America. The gray back, reddish head and legs, pale underside, and full tail with a dark tip give it a fox-like appearance, although it belongs to a distinct South American lineage.

Culpeos occupy páramo, puna grassland, desert, shrubland, temperate forest, and mountain valleys from sea level to high elevations. They hunt rodents, rabbits, birds, reptiles, and invertebrates and also eat carrion and seasonal fruit. Activity can be nocturnal or crepuscular where people are present. Individuals usually forage alone, while a breeding pair may share care of the young. The IUCN lists the species as Least Concern because of its broad range, but persecution associated with livestock losses remains a local threat. Photographed in Ecuador where they will walk up to you in Cotopaxi National Park.