Life Sciences Commons^™

The Scientific Classification Of Wolves: Canis Lupus Soupus, L. David Mech

USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center

Gray wolf, timber wolf, red wolf, eastern wolf, brush wolf, arctic wolf, Mexican wolf, maned wolf, Ethiopian wolf, etc., etc. How many kinds of wolves are there? And what are the differences? This is a really good question, and the answer is getting more complicated all the time. Let us start by going back a few years to the way science looked at wolves more traditionally— before the days of the new field of molecular genetics. Molecular genetics examines the actual DNA of animals and tries to classify them according to genetic similarities. ...

What does all this mean in …

Population Structure Of Island-Associated Pantropical Spotted Dolphins (Stenella Attenuata) In Hawaiian Waters, Sarah Shelby Courbis

Dissertations and Theses

Understanding gene flow, diversity, and dispersal patterns is important for predicting effects of natural events and anthropogenic activities on dolphin populations. With the very recent exceptions of false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens), spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris), and common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), Hawaiian odontocete species are managed as single stocks within the U.S. Hawaiian Exclusive Economic Zone. These exceptions are a result of recent studies that have indicated that some species have populations that show fidelity to individual islands or groups of islands, resulting in genetic differentiation, often with management implications. The first part …