Genetic Monitoring of Grey Wolves in Latvia Shows Adverse Reproductive and Social Consequences of Hunting

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Genetic indicators of animal populations are an important part of the parameters used to describe the population status. In addition, for social species, such as the grey wolf, the preservation of typical kinship relations and social structure is important to ensure the existence of populations as a well-functioning part of an ecosystem. Hunting can affect the genetic parameters and the stability of social structures. In this study, muscle tissue samples from wolves hunted in Latvia were collected between 2009 and 2021 for genetic and kinship analyses. It was established that the hunting pressure during this time had not caused negative changes in the genetic parameters of the population. The typical pack structure was observed; however, negative consequences of hunting were found in breeder loss, pack disruption, a loss of pack territories, and the early dispersal of juveniles. Although similar processes also occur in unexploited wolf populations, they affect the social structure of the population in less disruptive ways than the impact of high hunting pressure. Therefore, the impact of hunting on the kinship and social structure of the population should be further monitored and the consequences that such disturbances may have on the conservation of the population should be clarified. ABSTRACT: Nowadays, genetic research methods play an important role in animal population studies. Since 2009, genetic material from Latvian wolf specimens obtained through hunting has been systematically gathered. This study, spanning until 2021, scrutinizes the consequences of regulated wolf hunting on population genetic metrics, kinship dynamics, and social organization. We employed 16 autosomal microsatellites to investigate relationships between full siblings and parent–offspring pairs. Our analysis encompassed expected and observed heterozygosity, inbreeding coefficients, allelic diversity, genetic distance and differentiation, mean pairwise relatedness, and the number of migrants per generation. The Latvian wolf population demonstrated robust genetic diversity with minimal inbreeding, maintaining stable allelic diversity and high heterozygosity over time and it is not fragmented. Our findings reveal the persistence of conventional wolf pack structures and enduring kinship groups. However, the study also underscores the adverse effects of intensified hunting pressure, leading to breeder loss, pack disruption, territorial displacement, and the premature dispersal of juvenile wolves.