Data from: North-south differentiation and a region of high diversity in European wolves (Canis lupus)

European wolves (Canis lupus) show population genetic structure in the
absence of geographic barriers, and across relatively short distances for
this highly mobile species. Additional information on the location of and
divergence between population clusters is required, particularly because
wolves are currently recolonizing parts of Europe. We evaluated genetic
structure in 177 wolves from 11 countries using over 67K single nucleotide
polymorphism (SNP) loci. The results supported previous findings of an
isolated Italian population with lower genetic diversity than that
observed across other areas of Europe. Wolves from the remaining countries
were primarily structured in a north-south axis, with Croatia, Bulgaria,
and Greece (Dinaric-Balkan) differentiated from northcentral wolves that
included individuals from Finland, Latvia, Belarus, Poland and Russia.
Carpathian Mountain wolves in central Europe had genotypes intermediate
between those identified in northcentral Europe and the Dinaric-Balkan
cluster. Overall, individual genotypes from northcentral Europe suggested
high levels of admixture. We observed high diversity within Belarus, with
wolves from western and northern Belarus representing the two most
differentiated groups within northcentral Europe. Our results support the
presence of at least three major clusters (Italy, Carpathians,
Dinaric-Balkan) in southern and central Europe. Individuals from Croatia
also appeared differentiated from wolves in Greece and Bulgaria. Expansion
from glacial refugia, adaptation to local environments, and human-related
factors such as landscape fragmentation and frequent killing of wolves in
some areas may have contributed to the observed patterns. Our findings can
help inform conservation management of these apex predators and the
ecosystems of which they are part.