Production of Hybrids between Western Gray Wolves and Western Coyotes
Using artificial insemination we attempted to produce hybrids between captive, male, western, gray wolves (Canis lupus) and female, western coyotes (Canis latrans) to determine whether their gametes would be compatible and the coyotes could produce and nurture offspring. The results contribute new i...
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ftpubmed:oai:pubmedcentral.nih.gov:3934856 2023-05-15T15:50:59+02:00 Production of Hybrids between Western Gray Wolves and Western Coyotes Mech, L. David Christensen, Bruce W. Asa, Cheryl S. Callahan, Margaret Young, Julie K. 2014-02-25 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3934856 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24586418 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0088861 en eng Public Library of Science http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3934856 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24586418 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0088861 This is an open-access article, free of all copyright, and may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose. The work is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. PDM CC0 Research Article Text 2014 ftpubmed https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0088861 2014-03-09T01:40:41Z Using artificial insemination we attempted to produce hybrids between captive, male, western, gray wolves (Canis lupus) and female, western coyotes (Canis latrans) to determine whether their gametes would be compatible and the coyotes could produce and nurture offspring. The results contribute new information to an ongoing controversy over whether the eastern wolf (Canis lycaon) is a valid unique species that could be subject to the U. S. Endangered Species Act. Attempts with transcervically deposited wolf semen into nine coyotes over two breeding seasons yielded three coyote pregnancies. One coyote ate her pups, another produced a resorbed fetus and a dead fetus by C-section, and the third produced seven hybrids, six of which survived. These results show that, although it might be unlikely for male western wolves to successfully produce offspring with female western coyotes under natural conditions, western-gray-wolf sperm are compatible with western-coyote ova and that at least one coyote could produce and nurture hybrid offspring. This finding in turn demonstrates that gamete incompatibility would not have prevented western, gray wolves from inseminating western coyotes and thus producing hybrids with coyote mtDNA, a claim that counters the view that the eastern wolf is a separate species. However, some of the difficulties experienced by the other inseminated coyotes tend to temper that finding and suggest that more experimentation is needed, including determining the behavioral and physical compatibility of western gray wolves copulating with western coyotes. Thus although our study adds new information to the controversy, it does not settle it. Further study is needed to determine whether the putative Canis lycaon is indeed a unique species. Text Canis lupus gray wolf PubMed Central (PMC) PLoS ONE 9 2 e88861 |
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Research Article Mech, L. David Christensen, Bruce W. Asa, Cheryl S. Callahan, Margaret Young, Julie K. Production of Hybrids between Western Gray Wolves and Western Coyotes |
topic_facet |
Research Article |
description |
Using artificial insemination we attempted to produce hybrids between captive, male, western, gray wolves (Canis lupus) and female, western coyotes (Canis latrans) to determine whether their gametes would be compatible and the coyotes could produce and nurture offspring. The results contribute new information to an ongoing controversy over whether the eastern wolf (Canis lycaon) is a valid unique species that could be subject to the U. S. Endangered Species Act. Attempts with transcervically deposited wolf semen into nine coyotes over two breeding seasons yielded three coyote pregnancies. One coyote ate her pups, another produced a resorbed fetus and a dead fetus by C-section, and the third produced seven hybrids, six of which survived. These results show that, although it might be unlikely for male western wolves to successfully produce offspring with female western coyotes under natural conditions, western-gray-wolf sperm are compatible with western-coyote ova and that at least one coyote could produce and nurture hybrid offspring. This finding in turn demonstrates that gamete incompatibility would not have prevented western, gray wolves from inseminating western coyotes and thus producing hybrids with coyote mtDNA, a claim that counters the view that the eastern wolf is a separate species. However, some of the difficulties experienced by the other inseminated coyotes tend to temper that finding and suggest that more experimentation is needed, including determining the behavioral and physical compatibility of western gray wolves copulating with western coyotes. Thus although our study adds new information to the controversy, it does not settle it. Further study is needed to determine whether the putative Canis lycaon is indeed a unique species. |
format |
Text |
author |
Mech, L. David Christensen, Bruce W. Asa, Cheryl S. Callahan, Margaret Young, Julie K. |
author_facet |
Mech, L. David Christensen, Bruce W. Asa, Cheryl S. Callahan, Margaret Young, Julie K. |
author_sort |
Mech, L. David |
title |
Production of Hybrids between Western Gray Wolves and Western Coyotes |
title_short |
Production of Hybrids between Western Gray Wolves and Western Coyotes |
title_full |
Production of Hybrids between Western Gray Wolves and Western Coyotes |
title_fullStr |
Production of Hybrids between Western Gray Wolves and Western Coyotes |
title_full_unstemmed |
Production of Hybrids between Western Gray Wolves and Western Coyotes |
title_sort |
production of hybrids between western gray wolves and western coyotes |
publisher |
Public Library of Science |
publishDate |
2014 |
url |
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3934856 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24586418 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0088861 |
genre |
Canis lupus gray wolf |
genre_facet |
Canis lupus gray wolf |
op_relation |
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3934856 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24586418 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0088861 |
op_rights |
This is an open-access article, free of all copyright, and may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose. The work is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. |
op_rightsnorm |
PDM CC0 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0088861 |
container_title |
PLoS ONE |
container_volume |
9 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
e88861 |
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