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A first genetic assessment of the newly introduced Isle Royale gray wolves (Canis lupus)

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Abstract

The gray wolf (Canis lupus) population of Isle Royale National Park suffered an extreme population decline where by 2017 only two wolves that were both half-siblings and a father-daughter pair remained with low probability of producing viable young. This precipitous decline was in part due to the negative fitness consequences associated with inbreeding. To restore the Isle Royale ecosystem 19 gray wolves were translocated in 2018 and 2019. The founders were translocated from Grand Portage, MN (n = 4), western Upper Peninsula, MI (n = 4), Jostle Lake, ON (n = 3), and Michipicoten Island, ON (n = 8), and genotyped using 18 microsatellite loci. Allelic richness and heterozygosity of translocated Isle Royale founders was similar to reference populations. Population structure assigned the Isle Royale founders to gray wolves with little evidence of admixture from eastern wolves (Canis lycaon cf). In addition, we confirmed wolves translocated from Michipicoten Island were a single family-group. Through simulation and empirical analysis of the new Isle Royale founders we projected a loss in genetic variation over the next 50 years and an increase in inbreeding. However, varying levels of immigration may allow the retention of some genetic variation. Our findings indicate Isle Royale founders are genetically diverse and representative of the Great Lakes region, but the numerical dominance of a single family group may have negative implications for retaining genetic diversity and success of establishment for specific wolves, reinforcing the importance of continued monitoring of genetic fitness.

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Data availability

Microsatellite data needed to replicate the analysis were deposited into Zenodo, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4677512

Code availability

The Netlogo file containing the agent-based model, R code for reformatting data from the Netlogo simulation output and R code calculating inbreeding coefficients were deposited into Zenodo, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4677512

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Acknowledgements

We thank Rolf Peterson and Phil Hedrick for their insightful contributions to earlier drafts of the manuscript, Andrew Barnas for sharing of Netlogo data export code, and Tyler Wheeldon for providing information on wolves translocated from Michipicoten Island, ON. We would also like to thank Dr. Marty Kardos and two anonymous reviewers for improving the final publication. Sampling permits and in-kind assistance were provided by the National Park Service, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources & Forestry (AUC permit no. 19-441), and the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. This research was funded by the National Park service, Michigan Technological University, and the Ecosystem Science Center.

Funding

This study was funded by the National Park Service, Michigan Technological University, and the Ecosystem Science Center.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, USA

    Samuel D. Hervey, John A. Vucetich & Kristin E. Brzeski

  2. Biology Department, Trent University, Peterborough, ON, Canada

    Linda Y. Rutledge & Brent R. Patterson

  3. Wildlife Research and Monitoring Section, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Peterborough, ON, Canada

    Brent R. Patterson

  4. National Park Service, Isle Royale National Park, Houghton, MI, USA

    Mark C. Romanski

  5. State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Global Wildlife Conservation Center, Syracuse, NY, USA

    Jerrold L. Belant

  6. College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Michigan State University, Lansing, MI, USA

    Dean E. Beyer Jr.

  7. Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Grand Portage, MN, USA

    Seth A. Moore

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  1. Samuel D. Hervey
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  2. Linda Y. Rutledge
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  3. Brent R. Patterson
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  4. Mark C. Romanski
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  5. John A. Vucetich
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  7. Dean E. Beyer Jr.
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  8. Seth A. Moore
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  9. Kristin E. Brzeski
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Contributions

SDH, LYR, BRP, MCR, and KEB designed the study; BRP, MCR, JLB, SAM, and DEB collected the samples; LYR and BRP produced the microsatellite dataset for ISRO founders and reference samples; SDH, LYR and KEB analyzed microsatellite data and produced simulations; JAV provided guidance for simulations; All authors made substantial contributions to the writing of this article.

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Correspondence to Samuel D. Hervey or Kristin E. Brzeski.

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The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources & Forestry AUC permit no. 19-441.

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Hervey, S.D., Rutledge, L.Y., Patterson, B.R. et al. A first genetic assessment of the newly introduced Isle Royale gray wolves (Canis lupus). Conserv Genet 22, 913–926 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-021-01373-y

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