Ancient DNA Analysis Affirms the Canid from Altai as a Primitive Dog

The origin of domestic dogs remains controversial, with genetic data indicating a separation between modern dogs and wolves in the Late Pleistocene. However, only a few dog-like fossils are found prior to the Last Glacial Maximum, and it is widely accepted that the dog domestication predates the beginning of agriculture about 10,000 years ago. In order to evaluate the genetic relationship of one of the oldest dogs, we have isolated ancient DNA from the recently described putative 33,000-year old Pleistocene dog from Altai and analysed 413 nucleotides of the mitochondrial control region. Our analyses reveal that the unique haplotype of the Altai dog is more closely related to modern dogs and prehistoric New World canids than it is to contemporary wolves. Further genetic analyses of ancient canids may reveal a more exact date and centre of domestication.     

Analysis of structural diversity in wolf-like canids reveals post-domestication variants

Background

Although a variety of genetic changes have been implicated in causing phenotypic differences among dogs, the role of copy number variants (CNVs) and their impact on phenotypic variation is still poorly understood. Further, very limited knowledge exists on structural variation in the gray wolf, the ancestor of the dog, or other closely related wild canids. Documenting CNVs variation in wild canids is essential to identify ancestral states and variation that may have appeared after domestication.

Results

In this work, we genotyped 1,611 dog CNVs in 23 wolf-like canids (4 purebred dogs, one dingo, 15 gray wolves, one red wolf, one coyote and one golden jackal) to identify CNVs that may have arisen after domestication. We have found an increase in GC-rich regions close to the breakpoints and around 1 kb away from them suggesting that some common motifs might be associated with the formation of CNVs. Among the CNV regions that showed the largest differentiation between dogs and wild canids we found 12 genes, nine of which are related to two known functions associated with dog domestication; growth (PDE4D, CRTC3 and NEB) and neurological function (PDE4D, EML5, ZNF500, SLC6A11, ELAVL2, RGS7 and CTSB).

Conclusions

Our results provide insight into the evolution of structural variation in canines, where recombination is not regulated by PRDM9 due to the inactivation of this gene. We also identified genes within the most differentiated CNV regions between dogs and wolves, which could reflect selection during the domestication process.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2164-15-465) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Explaining Dog Wolf Differences in Utilizing Human Pointing Gestures: Selection for Synergistic Shifts in the Development of Some Social Skills

Background

The comparison of human related communication skills of socialized canids may help to understand the evolution and the epigenesis of gesture comprehension in humans. To reconcile previously contradicting views on the origin of dogs'' outstanding performance in utilizing human gestures, we suggest that dog-wolf differences should be studied in a more complex way.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We present data both on the performance and the behaviour of dogs and wolves of different ages in a two-way object choice test. Characteristic behavioural differences showed that for wolves it took longer to establish eye contact with the pointing experimenter, they struggled more with the handler, and pups also bit her more before focusing on the human''s signal. The performance of similarly hand-reared 8-week-old dogs and wolves did not differ in utilizing the simpler proximal momentary pointing. However, when tested with the distal momentary pointing, 4-month-old pet dogs outperformed the same aged hand reared wolves. Thus early and intensive socialisation does not diminish differences between young dogs and wolves in behaviour and performance. Socialised adult wolves performed similarly well as dogs in this task without pretraining. The success of adult wolves was accompanied with increased willingness to cooperate.

Conclusion/Significance

Thus, we provide evidence for the first time that socialised adult wolves are as successful in relying on distal momentary pointing as adult pet dogs. However, the delayed emergence of utilising human distal momentary pointing in wolves shows that these wild canines react to a lesser degree to intensive socialisation in contrast to dogs, which are able to control agonistic behaviours and inhibition of actions in a food related task early in development. We suggest a “synergistic” hypothesis, claiming that positive feedback processes (both evolutionary and epigenetic) have increased the readiness of dogs to attend to humans, providing the basis for dog-human communication.     

Limb morphology of domestic and wild canids: the influence of development on morphologic change

Biomechanical hypotheses are often invoked to explain the characteristic scaling of limb proportions. Patterns of static allometry and morphologic diversity, however, may also reflect the developmental mechanisms underlying morphologic change. In this study I document the importance of such developmental influences on the evolution of limb morphology in the extremely polymorphic domestic dog and in wild canid species. I use bivariate and discriminant function analyses to compare the limb morphology of adult dogs and wild canid species. I then compare ontogenetic allometry of four dog breeds with static allometry of domestic and wild canids. Results reveal, first, that there is considerable similarity between dogs and wild canid species; many wolf-like canids cannot be distinguished from domestic dogs of equivalent size. However, all dogs are consistently separated from fox-sized, wild canids by subtle but evolutionarily significant differences in olecranon, metapodial, and scapula morphology. Second, in domestic dogs the pattern of static allometry is nearly identical to that of ontogenetic allometry. This finding can be attributed to simple heterochronic alterations of postnatal growth rates. Apparently the diversity of limb proportions among adult domestic dogs and the observed difference between dogs and wild canids are somewhat predetermined, as they directly reflect the diversity of limb proportions evident during development of the domestic dog.     

Potential Sources of High Frequency and Biphonic Vocalization in the Dhole (Cuon alpinus)

Biphonation, i.e. two independent fundamental frequencies in a call spectrum, is a prominent feature of vocal activity in dog-like canids. Dog-like canids can produce a low (f0) and a high (g0) fundamental frequency simultaneously. In contrast, fox-like canids are only capable of producing the low fundamental frequency (f0). Using a comparative anatomical approach for revealing macroscopic structures potentially responsible for canid biphonation, we investigated the vocal anatomy for 4 (1 male, 3 female) captive dholes (Cuon alpinus) and for 2 (1 male, 1 female) wild red fox (Vulpes vulpes). In addition, we analyzed the acoustic structure of vocalizations in the same dholes that served postmortem as specimens for the anatomical investigation. All study dholes produced both high-frequency and biphonic calls. The anatomical reconstructions revealed that the vocal morphologies of the dhole are very similar to those of the red fox. These results suggest that the high-frequency and biphonic calls in dog-like canids can be produced without specific anatomical adaptations of the sound-producing structures. We discuss possible production modes for the high-frequency and biphonic calls involving laryngeal and nasal structures.     

Ancient DNA Analysis of the Oldest Canid Species from the Siberian Arctic and Genetic Contribution to the Domestic Dog

Modern Arctic Siberia provides a wealth of resources for archaeological, geological, and paleontological research to investigate the population dynamics of faunal communities from the Pleistocene, particularly as the faunal material coming from permafrost has proven suitable for genetic studies. In order to examine the history of the Canid species in the Siberian Arctic, we carried out genetic analysis of fourteen canid remains from various sites, including the well-documented Upper Paleolithic Yana RHS and Early Holocene Zhokhov Island sites. Estimated age of samples range from as recent as 1,700 years before present (YBP) to at least 360,000 YBP for the remains of the extinct wolf, Canis cf. variabilis. In order to examine the genetic affinities of ancient Siberian canids species to the domestic dog and modern wolves, we obtained mitochondrial DNA control region sequences and compared them to published ancient and modern canid sequences. The older canid specimens illustrate affinities with pre-domestic dog/wolf lineages while others appear in the major phylogenetic clades of domestic dogs. Our results suggest a European origin of domestic dog may not be conclusive and illustrates an emerging complexity of genetic contribution of regional wolf breeds to the modern Canis gene pool.     

Out of southern East Asia: the natural history of domestic dogs across the world

The origin and evolution of the domestic dog remains a controversial question for the scientific community, with basic aspects such as the place and date of origin, and the number of times dogs were domesticated, open to dispute. Using whole genome sequences from a total of 58 canids (12 gray wolves, 27 primitive dogs from Asia and Africa, and a collection of 19 diverse breeds from across the world), we find that dogs from southern East Asia have significantly higher genetic diversity compared to other populations, and are the most basal group relating to gray wolves, indicating an ancient origin of domestic dogs in southern East Asia 33 000 years ago. Around 15 000 years ago, a subset of ancestral dogs started migrating to the Middle East, Africa and Europe, arriving in Europe at about 10 000 years ago. One of the out of Asia lineages also migrated back to the east, creating a series of admixed populations with the endemic Asian lineages in northern China before migrating to the New World. For the first time, our study unravels an extraordinary journey that the domestic dog has traveled on earth.     

Earliest directly-dated human skull-cups

Background

The use of human braincases as drinking cups and containers has extensive historic and ethnographic documentation, but archaeological examples are extremely rare. In the Upper Palaeolithic of western Europe, cut-marked and broken human bones are widespread in the Magdalenian (∼15 to 12,000 years BP) and skull-cup preparation is an element of this tradition.

Principal Findings

Here we describe the post-mortem processing of human heads at the Upper Palaeolithic site of Gough''s Cave (Somerset, England) and identify a range of modifications associated with the production of skull-cups. New analyses of human remains from Gough''s Cave demonstrate the skilled post-mortem manipulation of human bodies. Results of the research suggest the processing of cadavers for the consumption of body tissues (bone marrow), accompanied by meticulous shaping of cranial vaults. The distribution of cut-marks and percussion features indicates that the skulls were scrupulously ''cleaned'' of any soft tissues, and subsequently modified by controlled removal of the facial region and breakage of the cranial base along a sub-horizontal plane. The vaults were also ‘retouched’, possibly to make the broken edges more regular. This manipulation suggests the shaping of skulls to produce skull-cups.

Conclusions

Three skull-cups have been identified amongst the human bones from Gough''s Cave. New ultrafiltered radiocarbon determinations provide direct dates of about 14,700 cal BP, making these the oldest directly dated skull-cups and the only examples known from the British Isles.     

Satsurblia: New Insights of Human Response and Survival across the Last Glacial Maximum in the Southern Caucasus

The region of western Georgia (Imereti) has been a major geographic corridor for human migrations during the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic (MP/UP). Knowledge of the MP and UP in this region, however, stems mostly from a small number of recent excavations at the sites of Ortvale Klde, Dzudzuana, Bondi, and Kotias Klde. These provide an absolute chronology for the Late MP and MP–UP transition, but only a partial perspective on the nature and timing of UP occupations, and limited data on how human groups in this region responded to the harsh climatic oscillations between 37,000–11,500 years before present. Here we report new UP archaeological sequences from fieldwork in Satsurblia cavein the same region. A series of living surfaces with combustion features, faunal remains, stone and bone tools, and ornaments provide new information about human occupations in this region (a) prior to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) at 25.5–24.4 ka cal. BP and (b) after the LGM at 17.9–16.2 ka cal. BP. The latter provides new evidence in the southern Caucasus for human occupation immediately after the LGM. The results of the campaigns in Satsurblia and Dzudzuana suggest that at present the most plausible scenario is one of a hiatus in the occupation of this region during the LGM (between 24.4–17.9 ka cal. BP). Analysis of the living surfaces at Satsurblia offers information about human activities such as the production and utilisation of lithics and bone tools, butchering, cooking and consumption of meat and wild cereals, the utilisation of fibers, and the use of certain woods. Microfaunal and palynological analyses point to fluctuations in the climate with consequent shifts in vegetation and the faunal spectrum not only before and after the LGM, but also during the two millennia following the end of the LGM.     

The <Emphasis Type="Italic">IGF1</Emphasis>small dog haplotype is derived from Middle Eastern grey wolves

Background

A selective sweep containing the insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) gene is associated with size variation in domestic dogs. Intron 2 of IGF1 contains a SINE element and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) found in all small dog breeds that is almost entirely absent from large breeds. In this study, we surveyed a large sample of grey wolf populations to better understand the ancestral pattern of variation at IGF1 with a particular focus on the distribution of the small dog haplotype and its relationship to the origin of the dog.

Results

We present DNA sequence data that confirms the absence of the derived small SNP allele in the intron 2 region of IGF1 in a large sample of grey wolves and further establishes the absence of a small dog associated SINE element in all wild canids and most large dog breeds. Grey wolf haplotypes from the Middle East have higher nucleotide diversity suggesting an origin there. Additionally, PCA and phylogenetic analyses suggests a closer kinship of the small domestic dog IGF1 haplotype with those from Middle Eastern grey wolves.

Conclusions

The absence of both the SINE element and SNP allele in grey wolves suggests that the mutation for small body size post-dates the domestication of dogs. However, because all small dogs possess these diagnostic mutations, the mutations likely arose early in the history of domestic dogs. Our results show that the small dog haplotype is closely related to those in Middle Eastern wolves and is consistent with an ancient origin of the small dog haplotype there. Thus, in concordance with past archeological studies, our molecular analysis is consistent with the early evolution of small size in dogs from the Middle East.See associated opinion by Driscoll and Macdonald: http://jbiol.com/content/9/2/10

     

Molecular genetics of the most endangered canid: the Ethiopian wolf Canis simensis

The world's most endangered canid is the Ethiopian wolf Canis simensis , which is found in six isolated areas of the Ethiopian highlands with a total population of no more than 500 individuals. Ethiopian wolf populations are declining due to habitat loss and extermination by humans. Moreover, in at least one population, Ethiopian wolves are sympatric with domestic dogs, which may hybridize with them, compete for food, and act as disease vectors. Using molecular techniques, we address four questions concerning Ethiopian wolves that have conservation implications. First, we determine the relationships of Ethiopian wolves to other wolf-like canids by phylogenetic analysis of 2001 base pairs of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence. Our results suggest that the Ethiopian wolf is a distinct species more closely related to gray wolves and coyotes than to any African canid. The mtDNA sequence similarity with gray wolves implies that the Ethiopian wolf may hybridize with domestic dogs, a recent derivative of the gray wolf. We examine this possibility through mtDNA restriction fragment analysis and analysis of nine microsatellite loci in populations of Ethiopian wolves. The results imply that hybridization has occurred between female Ethiopian wolves and male domestic dogs in one population. Finally, we assess levels of variability within and between two Ethiopian wolf populations. Although these closely situated populations are not differentiated, the level of variability in both is low, suggesting long-term effective population sizes of less than a few hundred individuals. We recommend immediate captive breeding of Ethiopian wolves to protect their gene pool from dilution and further loss of genetic variability.     

Mitochondrial DNA from prehistoric canids highlights relationships between dogs and South-East European wolves

The question of the origins of the dog has been much debated. The dog is descended from the wolf that at the end of the last glaciation (the archaeologically hypothesized period of dog domestication) was one of the most widespread among Holarctic mammals. Scenarios provided by genetic studies range from multiple dog-founding events to a single origin in East Asia. The earliest fossil dogs, dated approximately 17-12,000 radiocarbon ((14)C) years ago (YA), were found in Europe and in the Middle East. Ancient DNA (a-DNA) evidence could contribute to the identification of dog-founder wolf populations. To gain insight into the relationships between ancient European wolves and dogs we analyzed a 262-bp mitochondrial DNA control region fragment retrieved from five prehistoric Italian canids ranging in age from approximately 15,000 to approximately 3,000 (14)C YA. These canids were compared to a worldwide sample of 547 purebred dogs and 341 wolves. The ancient sequences were highly diverse and joined the three major clades of extant dog sequences. Phylogenetic investigations highlighted relationships between the ancient sequences and geographically widespread extant dog matrilines and between the ancient sequences and extant wolf matrilines of mainly East European origin. The results provide a-DNA support for the involvement of European wolves in the origins of the three major dog clades. Genetic data also suggest multiple independent domestication events. East European wolves may still reflect the genetic variation of ancient dog-founder populations.     

CRANIAL MORPHOLOGY OF DOMESTIC AND WILD CANIDS: THE INFLUENCE OF DEVELOPMENT ON MORPHOLOGICAL CHANGE

The domestic dog varies remarkably in cranial morphology. In fact, the differences in size and proportion between some dog breeds are as great as those between many genera of wild canids. In this study, I compare patterns of intracranial allometry and morphologic diversity between the domestic dog and wild canid species. The results demonstrate that the domestic dog is morphologically distinct from all other canids except its close relatives, the wolf-like canids. Following this, I compare patterns of static and ontogenetic scaling. Data on growth of domestic dogs are presented and used to investigate the developmental mechanisms underlying breed evolution. Apparently, most small breeds are paedomorphic with respect to certain morphologic characters. In dogs and other domestic animals, morphologic diversity among adults seems to depend on that expressed during development.     

Dog bites in humans and estimating human rabies mortality in rabies endemic areas of Bhutan

Background

Dog bites in humans are a public health problem worldwide. The issues of increasing stray dog populations, rabies outbreaks, and the risk of dogs biting humans have been frequently reported by the media in Bhutan. This study aimed to estimate the bite incidence and identify the risk factors for dog bites in humans, and to estimate human deaths from rabies in rabies endemic south Bhutan.

Methods

A hospital-based questionnaire survey was conducted during 2009–2010 among dog bites victims who visited three hospitals in Bhutan for anti-rabies vaccine injection. Decision tree modeling was used to estimate human deaths from rabies following dog bite injuries in two rabies endemic areas of south Bhutan.

Results

Three hundred and twenty four dog bite victims were interviewed. The annual incidence of dog bites differed between the hospital catchment areas: 869.8 (95% CI: 722.8–1022.5), 293.8 (240–358.2) and 284.8 (251.2–323) per 100,000 people in Gelephu, Phuentsholing and Thimphu, respectively. Males (62%) were more at risk than females (P<0.001). Children aged 5–9 years were bitten more than other age groups. The majority of victims (71%) were bitten by stray dogs. No direct fatal injury was reported. In two hospital areas (Gelephu and Phuentsholing) in south Bhutan the annual incidence of death from rabies was 3.14 (95% CI: 1.57–6.29) per 100,000 population. The decision tree model predicted an equivalent annual incidence of 4.67 (95% CI: 2.53–7.53) deaths/100,000 population at risk. In the absence of post exposure prophylaxis, the model predicted 19.24 (95% CI: 13.69–25.14) deaths/year in these two areas.

Conclusions

Increased educational awareness of people about the risk of dog bites and rabies is necessary, particularly for children in rabies endemic areas of Bhutan.     

Wolf or dog? Genetic identification of predators from saliva collected around bite wounds on prey

Wolf predation on livestock is a management problem in many areas and is often used to justify control measures against the wolves. However, wolves coexist with dogs across their range, and dogs could be responsible for attacks blamed on wolves. In this study we evaluate the possibility of obtaining sufficient DNA for species identification of the predator from saliva remaining close to bite wounds following a canid attack. Predator DNA of reasonably high quality was successfully extracted from bite wounds on two sheep that had been attacked on a farm and were genotyped using six informative microsatellite markers. A single consensus genotype could be constructed from the bite wounds of both sheep which we compared to genotypes obtained from Scandinavian wolves and dogs. The results clearly showed that the saliva sampled originated from a single dog. This report thus demonstrates the feasibility of predator species identification from bite wounds and also illustrates that it can not be taken for granted that wolves are responsible for canid livestock kills.     

Artificial insemination in canids: a useful tool in breeding and conservation

Artificial insemination (AI) and semen freezing have become services available to dog owners worldwide, and the demand for services to freeze semen is increasing. In other canids such as the fox, the fur industry utilizes fresh or frozen semen to artificially inseminate vixens to produce pelts. Clearly, AI facilitates the use of a male to sire several females by diluting the ejaculate, increases breeding hygiene, and allows crossing between species with slightly different breeding seasons. The African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) is currently considered by the World Conservation Union (IUCN) as one of most endangered canids. In captive populations of African wild dogs, semen has been frozen with encouraging results, using a standard cryopreservation protocol for domestic dogs, but successful AI has not been reported. In wolves, there is one report regarding the live birth of an offspring after intravaginal AI of a deslorelin-induced estrous female. In 2005, three Mexican gray wolf females were artificially bred by intrauterine insemination with freshly collected semen from unrelated males, and all females whelped. Artificial insemination may be vaginal, intrauterine or intratubal, and the semen may be fresh, fresh and chilled (diluted), or frozen-thawed, and the source of semen may be epididymal or ejaculated. In the domestic dog, the results are good to excellent for AI with all three types of processed semen when the source is ejaculated semen, whereas epididymal sperm still yields poorer results. Species differences in female physiology, as well as differences in the cryotolerance of the sperm from various canid species, warrant further research and development.     

Vitrification of oocytes from endangered Mexican gray wolves (Canis lupus baileyi)

Careful genetic management, including cryopreservation of genetic material, is central to conservation of the endangered Mexican gray wolf. We tested a technique, previously used to vitrify human and domestic animal oocytes, on oocytes from domestic dogs as a model and from the endangered Mexican wolf. This method provided a way to conserve oocytes from genetically valuable older female Mexican wolves as an alternative to embryos for preserving female genes. Oocytes were aspirated from ovaries of 36 female dogs in December and March (0 to 65 oocytes per female) and from six female wolves (4 to 73 per female) during their physiologic breeding season, or following stimulation with the GnRH agonist deslorelin. Oocytes from dogs were pooled; half were immediately tested for viability and the remainder vitrified, then warmed and tested for viability. All oocytes were vitrified by being moved through media of increasing cryoprotectant concentration, placed on Cryotops, and plunged into liquid nitrogen. There was no difference in viability (propidium iodide staining) between fresh and vitrified, warmed dog oocytes (65.7 and 61.0%, respectively, P = 0.27). Oocyte viability after warming was similarly assessed in a subset of wolves (4 to 15 oocytes from each of three females; total 29 oocytes). Of these, 57.1% of the post-thaw intact oocytes were viable, which was 41.4% of all oocytes warmed. These were the first oocytes from a canid or an endangered species demonstrated to have maintained viability after vitrification and warming. Furthermore, our results demonstrated that vitrification of oocytes with the Cryotop technique was an option for preserving female gametes from Mexican wolves for future use in captive breeding programs, although in vitro embryo production techniques must first be developed in canids for this technique to be used.     

People of the ancient rainforest: late Pleistocene foragers at the Batadomba-lena rockshelter, Sri Lanka

Batadomba-lena, a rockshelter in the rainforest of southwestern Sri Lanka, has yielded some of the earliest evidence of Homo sapiens in South Asia. H. sapiens foragers were present at Batadomba-lena from ca. 36,000 cal BP to the terminal Pleistocene and Holocene. Human occupation was sporadic before the global Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Batadomba-lena’s Late Pleistocene inhabitants foraged for a broad spectrum of plant and mainly arboreal animal resources (monkeys, squirrels and abundant rainforest snails), derived from a landscape that retained equatorial rainforest cover through periods of pronounced regional aridity during the LGM. Juxtaposed hearths, palaeofloors with habitation debris, postholes, excavated pits, and animal and plant remains, including abundant Canarium nutshells, reflect intensive habitation of the rockshelter in times of monsoon intensification and biome reorganisation after ca. 16,000 cal BP. This period corresponds with further broadening of the economic spectrum, evidenced though increased contribution of squirrels, freshwater snails and Canarium nuts in the diet of the rockshelter occupants. Microliths are more abundant and morphologically diverse in the earliest, pre-LGM layer and decline markedly during intensified rockshelter use on the wane of the LGM. We propose that changing toolkits and subsistence base reflect changing foraging practices, from shorter-lived visits of highly mobile foraging bands in the period before the LGM, to intensified use of Batadomba-lena and intense foraging for diverse resources around the site during and, especially, following the LGM. Traces of ochre, marine shell beads and other objects from an 80 km-distant shore, and, possibly burials reflect symbolic practices from the outset of human presence at the rockshelter. Evidence for differentiated use of space (individual hearths, possible habitation structures) is present in LGM and terminal Pleistocene layers. The record of Batadomba-lena demonstrates that Late Pleistocene pathways to (aspects of) behavioural ‘modernity’ (composite tools, practice of symbolism and ritual, broad spectrum economy) were diverse and ecologically contingent.     

Bear-Baiting May Exacerbate Wolf-Hunting Dog Conflict

Background

The influence of policy on the incidence of human-wildlife conflict can be complex and not entirely anticipated. Policies for managing bear hunter success and depredation on hunting dogs by wolves represent an important case because with increasing wolves, depredations are expected to increase. This case is challenging because compensation for wolf depredation on hunting dogs as compared to livestock is less common and more likely to be opposed. Therefore, actions that minimize the likelihood of such conflicts are a conservation need.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We used data from two US states with similar wolf populations but markedly different wolf/hunting dog depredation patterns to examine the influence of bear hunting regulations, bear hunter to wolf ratios, hunter method, and hunter effort on wolf depredation trends. Results indicated that the ratio of bear hunting permits sold per wolf, and hunter method are important factors affecting wolf depredation trends in the Upper Great Lakes region, but strong differences exist between Michigan and Wisconsin related in part to the timing and duration of bear-baiting (i.e., free feeding). The probability that a wolf depredated a bear-hunting dog increases with the duration of bear-baiting, resulting in a relative risk of depredation 2.12–7.22× greater in Wisconsin than Michigan. The net effect of compensation for hunting dog depredation in Wisconsin may also contribute to the difference between states.

Conclusions/Significance

These results identified a potential tradeoff between bear hunting success and wolf/bear-hunting dog conflict. These results indicate that management options to minimize conflict exist, such as adjusting baiting regulations. If reducing depredations is an important goal, this analysis indicates that actions aside from (or in addition to) reducing wolf abundance might achieve that goal. This study also stresses the need to better understand the relationship among baiting practices, the effect of compensation on hunter behavior, and depredation occurrence.     

DNA Sequence Variants in the Five Prime Untranslated Region of the Cyclooxygenase-2 Gene Are Commonly Found in Healthy Dogs and Gray Wolves

The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of regional DNA variants upstream to the translation initiation site of the canine Cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2) gene in healthy dogs. Cox-2 plays a role in various disease conditions such as acute and chronic inflammation, osteoarthritis and malignancy. A role for Cox-2 DNA variants in genetic predisposition to canine renal dysplasia has been proposed and dog breeders have been encouraged to select against these DNA variants. We sequenced 272–422 bases in 152 dogs unaffected by renal dysplasia and found 19 different haplotypes including 11 genetic variants which had not been described previously. We genotyped 7 gray wolves to ascertain the wildtype variant and found that the wolves we analyzed had predominantly the second most common DNA variant found in dogs. Our results demonstrate an elevated level of regional polymorphism that appears to be a feature of healthy domesticated dogs.