The golden jackal and the golden wolf appear to be similar in behavior, appearance and also name, however, they are not the same species, in the face of what a lot of people have been considering for years.

They are very similar in body size and shape, with the head similar to that of the wolf and the same teeth and shape together with fur color. Even with all these similarities, they are not the same.

According to Klaus-Peter Koepfli, who is a conservation and evolutionary geneticist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Washington, "Our results showed that African and Eurasian golden jackals were distinct across all the genetic markers we tested, including data from whole genomes, suggesting these are independently evolving lineages. We find no evidence of the Eurasian golden jackal occurring in continental Africa".

Therefore, Canis aureus is the scientific name for the golden jackal and researchers have come up with a suggestion of renaming the species Africa Canis anthus (African Golden Wolf) however, it has been concluded that the animal leads to increased number of members in the Canidae species that includes dogs, foxes, wolves, jackals and coyotes from 35 to 36.

The African golden wolf could be found in both the areas: North and East Africa. However, the Eurasian golden jackal is from both Southern Europe, through the Middle East, and Southern Asia.

Koepfli said their study has found that even among popular and widespread species like golden jackals, hidden biodiversity could be revealed.