scholarly journals Acoustic Identification of Wild Gray Wolves, Canis lupus, Using Low Quality Recordings

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 41-49
Author(s):  
Cara Hull ◽  
Caitlin McCombe ◽  
Angela Dassow
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Function Analysis ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Individual Identification ◽  
Invasive Technique ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Vocal Individuality ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Acoustic Signatures

Invasive trapping and radio-collaring techniques are currently used by conservation biologists to study the population dynamics of gray wolves (Canis lupus). Previous research has found wolf howls can be used to determine individual identity on high quality recordings from captive animals, offering an opportunity for non-invasive monitoring of packs.We recorded wild wolves in Central Wisconsin to determine the effectiveness of these features in determining individuality in low quality recordings. The wolf howls analyzed were from two adult individuals from separate packs. Using a principle component analysis, maximum frequency and end frequency of the calls were determined to be most individualistic. Using these features in a discriminant function analysis, howls were able to be identified from individuals with 100% accuracy. Gray wolves play an important role in ecosystem maintenance, however, the current monitoring techniques are costly and invasive. The creation of an easily accessible, non-invasive technique that can be used by individuals with a variety of technical backgrounds is necessary to address concerns faced by conservation efforts. To address these issues, all analyses performed usedfree or low-cost software, making this method of individual identification a useful alternative for conservation biologists. KEYWORDS: Canis lupus lycaon; Gray Wolf; Acoustic Signatures; Howls; Tracking Method; Conservation; Vocal Individuality

Impacts of recolonizing gray wolves (Canis lupus) on survival and mortality in two sympatric ungulates

2018 ◽  
Vol 96 (7) ◽  
pp. 760-768 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.A. Dellinger ◽  
C.R. Shores ◽  
M. Marsh ◽  
M.R. Heithaus ◽  
W.J. Ripple ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Mule Deer ◽  
Survival Rates ◽  
Odocoileus Hemionus ◽  
Mortality Rates ◽  
Adult Survival ◽  
Mortality Data ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
Large Predators

There is growing recognition that humans may mediate the strength and nature of the ecological effects of large predators. We took advantage of ongoing gray wolf (Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758) recolonization in Washington, USA, to contrast adult survival rates and sources of mortality for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus (Rafinesque, 1817)) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus (Zimmermann, 1780)) in areas with and without wolf packs in a managed landscape dominated by multiple human uses. We tested the hypothesis that the addition of wolves to the existing predator guild would augment predator-induced mortality rates for both ungulates. Source of mortality data from adult mule deer and white-tailed deer, respectively, revealed that wolf-related mortality was low compared with that inflicted by other predators or humans. Predator-caused mortality was largely confined to winter. There was little effect of wolf presence on adult deer mortality rates, and there was no difference in mortality between the two deer species relative to wolf-free or wolf-occupied sites. Although this study occurred early in wolf recovery in Washington, our results differ from those demonstrated for gray wolves in protected areas. Thus, we encourage further investigation of effects of direct predation by recolonizing large carnivores on prey in human-dominated landscapes.

scholarly journals Severe Maxillary Osteomyelitis in a Gray Wolf (Canis lupus)

2013 ◽  
Vol 126 (3) ◽  
pp. 238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon Barber-Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
Dental Injuries

Whereas dental injuries and abnormalities have been documented in Gray Wolves (Canis lupus), severe maxillary necrosis has not previously been implicated in a Gray Wolf fatality. Here I report maxillary osteomyelitis in a wild Gray Wolf from northeastern Minnesota of such severity that I hypothesize it ultimately led to death by starvation.

scholarly journals Potential for the use of vocal individuality as a conservation research tool in two threatened Philippine hornbill species, the Visayan Hornbill and the Rufous-headed Hornbill

2009 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
RICHARD POLICHT ◽  
MILADA PETRŮ ◽  
LUCIA LASTIMOZA ◽  
LEO SUAREZ
Keyword(s):  
Census Data ◽  
Maximum Amplitude ◽  
Individual Identification ◽  
Frequency Range ◽  
Harmonic Frequency ◽  
Loud Calls ◽  
Vocal Individuality ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Temporal Variables ◽  
Marking Technique

SummaryThis study presents the first multivariate analysis of hornbill vocalizations and the first bioacoustic study of any Philippine hornbill species. We analyzed loud calls of two Philippine hornbill species, the Rufous-headed Hornbill Aceros waldeni and the Visayan Hornbill Penelopides panini panini, to assess the possibility for their use in individual identification.Our study showed that individuals of the two studied hornbill species can be identified on the basis of their loud calls, which means that these calls potentially contain information about the caller. Discriminant analysis classified 89% of individual Rufous-headed Hornbills and 90% of individual Visayan Hornbills correctly. The acoustic variables describing the most variation among individual Visayan Hornbills were spectral variables (second amplitude peak) and temporal variables (location of the maximum amplitude and call duration). The calls of individual Rufous-headed Hornbill were differentiated mainly by spectral variables (the fundamental and the first harmonic frequency, and additionally the upper quartile of the frequency range). Frequency parameters in Rufous-headed Hornbill calls were significantly lower than those in Visayan Hornbills. The use of acoustic monitoring of individuals as a non-invasive marking technique could help to monitor hornbill individual life history and to improve census data using capture-mark-recapture technique.

scholarly journals The Japanese wolf is most closely related to modern dogs and its ancestral genome has been widely inherited by dogs throughout East Eurasia

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Gojobori ◽  
Nami Arakawa ◽  
Xiaokaiti Xiayire ◽  
Yuki Matsumoto ◽  
Shuichi Matsumura ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Transitional Period ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Ancestral Genome ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
Japanese Archipelago ◽  
Whole Genomes ◽  
Genomic Analyses ◽  
The Japanese Archipelago

The Japanese wolf (Canis lupus hodophilax Temminck, 1839) was a subspecies of the gray wolf that inhabited the Japanese Archipelago and became extinct 100-120 years ago. In this study, we determined the whole genomes of nine Japanese wolves from the 19th- early 20th centuries and 11 Japanese dogs and analyzed them along with both modern and ancient wolves and dogs. Genomic analyses indicate that the Japanese wolf was a unique subspecies of the gray wolf that was genetically distinct from both modern and ancient gray wolves, lacking gene flow with other gray wolves. A Phylogenetic tree that minimizes the effects of introgression shows that Japanese wolves are closest to the dog monophyletic group among the gray wolves. Moreover, Japanese wolves show significant genetic affinities with East Eurasian dogs. We estimated the level of introgression from the ancestor of the Japanese wolves to the ancestor of East Eurasian dogs that had occurred in the transitional period from the Pleistocene to the Holocene, at an early stage after divergence from West Eurasian dog lineages. Because of this introgression, Japanese wolf ancestry has been inherited by many dogs through admixture between East Eurasian dog lineages. As a result of this heredity, up to 5.5% of modern dog genomes throughout East Eurasia are derived from Japanese wolf ancestry.

scholarly journals Postcranial diversity and recent ecomorphic impoverishment of North American gray wolves

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 20170613 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susumu Tomiya ◽  
Julie A. Meachen
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
North American ◽  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Late Quaternary ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Evolutionary Potential ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Northwestern North America

Recent advances in genomics and palaeontology have begun to unravel the complex evolutionary history of the gray wolf, Canis lupus . Still, much of their phenotypic variation across time and space remains to be documented. We examined the limb morphology of the fossil and modern North American gray wolves from the late Quaternary (< ca 70 ka) to better understand their postcranial diversity through time. We found that the late-Pleistocene gray wolves were characterized by short-leggedness on both sides of the Cordilleran–Laurentide ice sheets, and that this trait survived well into the Holocene despite the collapse of Pleistocene megafauna and disappearance of the ‘Beringian wolf' from Alaska. By contrast, extant populations in the Midwestern USA and northwestern North America are distinguished by their elongate limbs with long distal segments, which appear to have evolved during the Holocene possibly in response to a new level or type of prey depletion. One of the consequences of recent extirpation of the Plains ( Canis lupus nubilus ) and Mexican wolves ( C. l. baileyi ) from much of the USA is an unprecedented loss of postcranial diversity through removal of short-legged forms. Conservation of these wolves is thus critical to restoration of the ecophenotypic diversity and evolutionary potential of gray wolves in North America.

scholarly journals Prolonged Intensive Dominance Behavior Between Gray Wolves, Canis lupus

2010 ◽  
Vol 124 (3) ◽  
pp. 215 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. David Mech ◽  
H. Dean Cluff
Keyword(s):  
Adult Male ◽  
Canis Lupus ◽  
High Arctic ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Dominance Behavior ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
Free Ranging

Dominance is one of the most pervasive and important behaviors among wolves in a pack, yet its significance in free-ranging packs has been little studied. Insights into a behavior can often be gained by examining unusual examples of it. In the High Arctic near Eureka, Nunavut, Canada, we videotaped and described an unusually prolonged and intensive behavioral bout between an adult male Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) and a male member of his pack, thought to be a maturing son. With tail raised, the adult approached a male pack mate about 50 m from us and pinned and straddled this packmate repeatedly over 6.5 minutes, longer than we had ever seen in over 50 years of studying wolves. We interpreted this behavior as an extreme example of an adult wolf harassing a maturing offspring, perhaps in prelude to the offspring's dispersal.

Genetic variability in natural populations of the gray wolf, Canis lupus

1991 ◽  
Vol 69 (5) ◽  
pp. 1183-1188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phyllis K. Kennedy ◽  
Michael L. Kennedy ◽  
Peter L. Clarkson ◽  
Ilme S. Liepins
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variability ◽  
Spatial Heterogeneity ◽  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Gel Electrophoresis ◽  
Human Impacts ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Starch Gel Electrophoresis ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
Starch Gel

The genetic variability of gray wolves (Canis lupus) from northwestern Canada was assessed through starch-gel electrophoresis. Of 27 protein systems examined, 25, representing 37 presumptive loci, were consistently scorable; 7 proteins (5 were consistently scorable) exhibited polymorphism. The level of heterozygosity (3.0%) was medial relative to values reported for natural populations of Carnivora and high relative to values reported for natural populations of canids. An overall pattern of few deviations from Hardy–Weinberg expectations and some spatial heterogeneity was observed. Wolves associated with different caribou herds exhibited a low level of differentiation (FST = 0.029). The pattern of variability supports the view of a large panmictic population resulting from extensive movements of individuals and packs and from natural and human impacts on pack structure and formation.

scholarly journals Clarifying late Holocene Coyote (Canis latrans)–Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) sympatry in the western Great Lake states

2020 ◽  
Vol 134 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-41
Author(s):  
Richard P. Thiel
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Late Holocene ◽  
Canis Latrans ◽  
Great Lakes Region ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Distribution Maps ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Genetics Research ◽  
Lake States

North American Canis genetics research varies in interpreting the Pre-Columbian distribution of Coyotes (Canis latrans). Many studies have relied on generalized species-distribution maps and a few actually cite earlier genetics works as secondary sources. I use archaeological, paleontological, and settlement era documents to demonstrate that Coyotes were present in portions of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois thousands of years prior to European arrival. This review provides important clarification of historical Coyote distribution in the region and may have implications on the various interpretations of introgressed Coyote haplotypes present in Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) throughout the Great Lakes region.

Low-Cost Image Processing Approach for Waterline Detection

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurore V. Zuzick ◽  
Jeff Campana ◽  
Richard Royce
Keyword(s):  
Image Processing ◽  
Free Surface ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Digital Camera ◽  
Ship Hull ◽  
Invasive Technique ◽  
Measurement Instruments ◽  
Computationally Efficient ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Area Of Interest

The height of the intersection between the free surface and a ship hull is of interest for many naval architecture applications. For example, wave height at a station influences the probability of water on deck, and wetted elevation at a buttock on a transom influences resistance forces. Determining this parameter through testing (either model- or full-scale) can be accomplished through various methods, many of which involve placing one or more measurement instruments in the flow field (e.g. resistance or capacitance probes or wires). However, the presence of these elements in the system can affect the flow itself. Non-invasive techniques, including sonic methods and laser-enabled technologies, avoid this issue, though there are benefits and drawbacks associated with these techniques as well. Measurement system complexity, in particular, can drive experimental cost and schedule. Some proven methods may provide more spatial resolution than is necessary to meet experimental objectives, providing extraneous information at additional cost. Image processing of digital camera video frames can be an effective non-invasive technique, though many commercially-available image processing tools are not designed specifically for this application. Though quite robust, these tools can add unnecessary time and cost to data processing for the waterline elevation problem. This paper lays out computationally-efficient image processing software methods which can be implemented in Matlab (without requiring additional toolboxes) to determine free surface elevation along a ship hull at a station or buttock using video files generated by cameras trained on the hull in the area of interest.

scholarly journals DNA Fingerprinting of Gray Wolves

1991 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 239-248
Author(s):  
Patricia Rabenold ◽  
Mauricio De Gortari
Keyword(s):  
Nucleotide Sequence ◽  
Dna Fingerprinting ◽  
Enzymatic Digestion ◽  
Individual Identification ◽  
Gray Wolf ◽  
Nylon Membrane ◽  
Fresh Tissue ◽  
Gray Wolves ◽  
The Core ◽  
Core Sequence

Plans and proposals for the restoration of gray wolves (Canis lupus) in Yellowstone National Park are being considered. An important aspect that is contemplated within these plans is the monitoring of the genetic structure of the pack(s) which might be reintroduced. This means that the restored animals, which have known and defined genotypes, could be distinguished from other unrelated and genetically different gray wolves that could be found in the Park. It also means that for every offspring observed within the pack(s) its genetic relationship with the translocated animals could be monitored; that is, establishment of parentage could be routinely carried out. Because distinguishing unrelated wolves phenotypically is practically impossible, it is necessary to rely on a technique capable of revealing sufficient genetic variation to allow individual identification of the relocated wolves, and assignment of parents to the offspring produced within the pack(s). We used the molecular biological technique called DNA fingerprinting (Jeffreys et al. 1985a) to address this aspect of the gray wolf relocation plans. This technique is based on finding particular DNA regions called hypervariable minisatellites (Jeffreys et al. 1985b), that consist of very short nucleotide sequences repeated many times in tandem and show multiallelic variation in the number of repeating units in each allele. DNA fingerprinting involves the extraction of DNA from almost any fresh tissue (blood, skin, semen, etc.), followed by its digestion with an enzyme (restriction endonuclease), that cuts the DNA molecule at specific base sequences. The DNA fragments produced by this enzymatic digestion are then separated by size along an electrical gradient in an agarose gel. A record of the fragment distribution pattern within the gel is made by blotting the DNA onto a nylon membrane (Southern blotting), to which it is permanently bonded. Those fragments among the total that carry a particular nucleotide sequence are identified via hybridization with a radioactively labeled "probe" molecule carrying the complementary nucleotide sequence (in this case, the core sequence of the tandem repetitive units). The positions at which the probe attaches are recorded by exposing X-ray film to the hybridized membrane. The resulting autoradiograph shows dozens of bands that correspond to the many different fragment sizes bearing the core sequence. This is the "fingerprint".

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document