The systematic status of the Italian wolf Canis lupus

Author： Nowak Ronald M.   Federoff Nicholas Brusco E.  

Publisher： Mammal Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences

ISSN： 0001-7051

Source： Acta Theriologica, Vol.47, Iss.3, 2002-07, pp. : 333-338

Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.

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Abstract

In the past, the gray wolf Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758, has been recognized in Italy as either the subspecies lupus or italicus. It has also been postulated that this population has undergone introgression from the domestic dog Canis familiaris. In order to clarify these issues, multistatistical analyses were made of 10 skull measurements of 34 full grown male wolves from the Italian Peninsula, 91 other male Eurasian wolves, and 20 domestic dogs. The analyses, together with other morphological evidence and prior genetic research, support recognition of the Italian wolf as a separate subspecies, Canis lupus italicus. The same evidence indicates that the subspecies has not been affected through hybridization with the domestic dog.

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