Biology subjects

Hennelly, L.

Publications and source records attributed to Hennelly, L..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

The population structure and genetic health of European wolves

Once nearly eradicated from Europe, grey wolves (Canis lupus) have recently undergone a remarkable demographic recovery, but their long-term survival remains precarious. By analyzing 1,001 genomes, we uncover a mosaic of distinct evolutionary lineages, not a single recovering population. Northern populations exhibit Asian wolf ancestry, while southern populations preserve ancient Holocene lineages, with dog introgression varying by region. Isolated wolves from the Scandinavian, Italian, and Iberian peninsulas harbored particularly high levels of inbreeding and fixed deleterious mutations. Signatures of genome erosion were widespread across Europe, with many populations falling well short of the minimum size recommended for long-term survival. Our study reveals the complex tapestry of wolf ancestry and variation across Europe, which calls for nuanced, regional conservation plans founded in genetic monitoring.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2024

Complex genomic ancestry in southern regions and drivers of continental-level genetic diversity in the wolves of Asia

Gray wolves (Canis lupus) in Asia encompass most of the species global genetic diversity and many endangered populations. However, a clear understanding of the evolutionary history of wolves from many parts of Asia, especially southern regions, is lacking. We used 98 whole genomes of wolves sampled across Eurasia to better resolve their evolutionary history by investigating phylogenetic and gene flow histories across the genome, and to characterize their demographic history and genetic diversity. The strongest barriers to gene flow coincided with boundaries separating the three major extant wolf lineages - Indian, Tibetan, and Holarctic. Wolves in the central Asian mountain ranges belonged to the Holarctic lineage, and despite their geographic adjacency only share minimal ancestry with the Tibetan lineage. In contrast, wolves from eastern Asia share population-wide ancestry with the Tibetan lineage, which may reflect an unsampled lineage similar, but not exactly to, the modern-day Tibetan lineage. Wolves from southwestern Asia also share population-wide ancestry with the Indian lineage, likely due to old (>6kya) admixture events. Long-term historical declines over the last 100,000 years, geographic isolation, and recent inbreeding have resulted in the Indian and Tibetan wolves having some of the lowest levels of genetic diversity and highest realized genetic loads. In contrast, adjacent populations exhibit some of the highest genetic diversity, due in part to admixture along contact zones. Our study illustrates how using multiple approaches that consider heterogenous signals across the genome can more fully resolve the historical and contemporary processes that have led to present-day species diversity.

evolutionary biology↗

bioRxiv2019

Characterising the vocal repertoire of the Indian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes)

Vocal communication in social animals plays a crucial role in mate choice, maintaining social structure, and foraging strategy. The Indian grey wolf, among the less studied subspecies, is a social carnivore that lives in groups called packs and has many types of vocal communication. In this study, we characterise harmonic vocalisation types in the Indian wolf using howl survey responses and opportunistic recordings from captive and nine packs (each pack contains 2-9 individuals) of free-ranging Indian wolves. Using principal component analysis, hierarchical clustering, and discriminant function analysis, we found four vocal types using 270 recorded vocalisations (Average Silhouette width Si = 0.598) which include howls and howl-bark (N=238), whimper (N=2), social squeak (N=28), and whine (N=2). Although having a smaller body size, Indian wolf howls have an average mean fundamental frequency of 0.422KHz ({+/-}0.126), which is similar to other Holarctic clade subspecies. The whimper showed the highest frequency modulation (37.296{+/-}4.601 KHz) and the highest mean fundamental frequency (1.708{+/-}0.524 KHz) compared to other call types. Less information is available on the third vocalisation type, i.e. Social squeak or talking (Mean fundamental frequency =0.461{+/-}0.083 KHz), which is highly variable (coefficient of frequency variation = 18.778{+/-}3.587 KHz). Our studys characterisation of the Indian wolfs harmonic vocal repertoire provides a first step in understanding the function and contextual use of vocalisations in this social mammal.

animal behavior and cognition↗