Allozyme variability in the Italian wolf (Canis lupus) population

Multilocus protein electrophoresis was used to estimate genetic variability in a sample of 38 Italian wolves (Canis lupus). Percentage of polymorphic loci was p = 10.0 per cent (four polymorphic loci out of 40 examined), and average observed heterozygosity was Ho = 0.028. Genotypes were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Electrophoretic analysis does not indicate a significant reduction of genetic variability at nuclear gene loci following at least one century of isolation from other European populations and demographic fluctuations suggested by recent range contraction and expansion. These findings are compared with published allozyme and mitochondrial DNA data for dogs, Canadian wolves, and introgressed wolf x coyote populations from Minnesota and Isle Royale (U.S.A.).