WolvesWLF314

2009

What is a wolf?

Killer

Brother

Menace

Fool

Symbol

DemonProvider

Friend

Keystone

Trickster

Hero

Bardeleden et al. 2005

African wild dog

Dhole

Golden jackal

Dog

Gray wolf

Coyote

Side-striped jackal

Black-backed jackal

African wild dog (Lycaon pictus)

Dhole (Cuon alpinus)

• 8 species– But possibly 10, or 11, maybe even 12

• Northern Hemisphere (exception-dingo)

• Highly social- packs• Predatory but occasionally omnivorous• Hybridization

Genus Canis

Hybridization

Gray wolf (Canis lupus) Red wolf (Canis rufus) Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis)

Coyote (Canis latrans) Golden jackal (Canis aureus) Dog (Canis familiaris)

Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis)

Gray wolf (Canis lupus)

• Circumpolar distribution• Largest canid (23-80 kg)• Color variation (white – black)

Gray Wolf

• territorial – aggressive defense by pack

• females sexually mature ~ 2 yr, males ~ 3 yr

• gestation ~ 2 mo.

• altricial pups born in den – 8 to 10 wks

Wolf communication

• Highly social• Vocal

– Howling• Olfactory

– Scent rolling• Body language

Schenkel 1947

Zimen 1981

Social ecology

• Pack- social unit• Breeders and offspring• Dispersal

– Budding• Variation in size• Seasonal• Models of pack structure

Vonholdt et al. 2008

Why packs?

• Larger prey?• More efficient?

Thurber and Peterson 1993

Ecosystem effects

• Often cited as a ‘keystone’ species• Direct effects

– Prey populations– Mesopredators

• Indirect effects– Plant communities– Scavengers– Trophic cascades

•1973 -- lower 48 listed “Endangered” (except MN = “Threatened”)

•2009 -- 3 DPSs

Eastern- threatened

Western- delisted

Southwestern- non-essential experimental population

Mexican Gray Wolf(Canis lupus baileyi)

• genetically distinct subspecies

Size: < northern gray wolf (~ red wolf, 20-36 kg)

Habitat: Mountains of the SW

Diet: elk, deer, small mammals

• extinct in native habitat by 1950s

• 1998: 11 wolves reintroduced to AZ & NM

Red wolf (Canis rufus)

• Medium-sized canid (27-37 kg)• Reddish coat color• Pack social structure

USFWS

Nowak 2002

Early History• Massachusetts- first wolf bounty (1630)• Virginia Bay Colony followed (1632)• Court records from 1768 to 1789 indicated wolf bounties paid in eastern NC

Hailer & Leonard 2008

1960s

• McCarley 1962– Compared red wolf and coyote skulls– Suggested red wolves in eastern Texas

likely hybrids– Only pure red wolves in SW Louisiana

1960s• More and more

morphological studies found few pure red wolves

• Coyote range expanded eastward

• 1967 red wolves listed under US Endangered Species Preservation Act

Paradiso 1968

1970s• Pure wolves only existed in

coastal plains of SE Texas and SW Louisiana (Paradiso and Nowak 1972)

• USFWS- only way to save red wolf was to capture remaining pure individuals

1973-1980

• 400 wild canids captured from remaining red wolf range

• 43 determined ‘morphologically’ pure red wolves

• Captive breeding tests determined only 17 actually pure

1980

• Captive breeding program initiated– Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma, WA

• Red wolf officially declared extinct in the wild

1980s

North Carolina

1987

• 4 red wolf pairs reintroduced into Alligator National Wildlife Refuge

• Non-essential experimental population status

• 1st species declared extinct to later be reintroduced

1990s- Crisis

• Coyotes quickly migrated into eastern NC

• 1993 1st hybridization event between reintroduced wolves and coyotes detected

• Fears of hybrid swarm

1999• PHVA conducted for

red wolf• Concluded greatest

threat to red wolf was hybridization

• Formation of Red Wolf Recovery Implementation Team (RWRIT)

• Adopted aggressive adaptive management plan

2009

40 red wolf pups

7 hybrid pups (2 litters)

# of known wild litters

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

19881990199219941996199820002002200420062008

Year

#of l

itter

s

HybridWolf

USFWS 2007

5-year review

Coyote

Gray wolf

Red wolf

Nowak 2002

Two Types of DNANucleus

Mitochondrion

Animal Cell

MtDNA

nDNA

MaternalInheritance

BiparentalInheritance

Roy et al. 1996

Roy et al. 1996

Wilson et al. 2000

Wilson et al. 2000

Wheeldon and White 2008

What is a wolf?