Data from: Reaching reproduction in a large carnivore: Role of early environment and intrinsic traits

To reach reproduction, individuals must survive the juvenile stage, a
critical period of low survival rates in large carnivores. Early-life
conditions during this stage can have lasting effects on survival,
reproductive maturation, growth, physiology, and behaviour. We assessed
recruitment probability in Scandinavian wolves, i.e., the probability that
a wolf to reaches the reproductive stage and has pups surviving at least
five months of age. To unravel human-related and biological factors within
the natal territory that could affect recruitment probability, we analysed
life-history data from 582 Scandinavian wolves (Canis lupus) identified by
DNA as pups or juveniles in their birth territory. Factors considered
included main prey density, road density, human density, and proximity to
non-breeding zones, as well as sex, inbreeding level and collaring. Among
the 582 wolves analysed, 122 produced at least one surviving pup,
corresponding to a recruitment probability of 0.21. Recruitment
probability was more than twice as high (0.5) for juvenile wolves fitted
with GPS collars compared to non-collared individuals (0.22), and was
positively correlated with human population density in the natal
territory. We found no significant effects of other biologically or
human-related predictors. These results suggest that in this large
carnivore population, managed below carrying capacity, individual
recruitment probability is primarily influenced by human-related factors,
potentially reflecting poaching risk.