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Earlier studies have indicated that consumption of beavers Castor ssp. by wolves Canis lupus varies seasonally and is influenced by rainfall affecting water levels. Therefore, to determine whether ...

We studied diet and prey preferences of the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) inhabiting south-east Poland, based on kills found during GPS-GSM telemetry and opportunistic winter tracking. Among 64 lynx kills were roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) (91%), red deer (Cervus elaphus) (3%) and brown hare (Lepus europaeus) (6%). From the ungulate community, lynx selected roe deer (D = 0.845) and avoided all other ungulates. We recorded one case of surplus and two cases of parallel killing. Lynx visited the same killed roe deer on average for 2.3 days, and for up to six days when surplus or parallel killing occurred. High numbers of the roe deer in south-east Poland supports the persistence of the lynx, but we urge managers to take under consideration food requirements of the lynx when planning game management.

The gray wolf Canis lupus range in central Europe is dynamically expanding, reconnecting previously isolated populations. Thus, a recent paper has proposed to merge the current Baltic and Central European (CE) wolf management units, which are no longer isolated by distance. However, recent genetic findings indicate that these two populations are not genetically homogenous. Here we review the most recent data on wolf genetic structure in central Europe and show that even though the CE and Baltic wolves represent the same phylogeographic lineage, their demographic history has resulted in significant genetic structure between these two populations. While the groups are interconnected by moderate gene flow, it is not high enough to reduce the strong founder signal observed in the CE population, suggesting that population dynamics within the CE wolf range are largely independent from those of its source (Baltic) population. Consequently, a management unit combining the CE and Baltic wolves would not form a demographically coherent entity. Thus, we recommend that conservation management units maintain their separate status.

Local extinction and recolonization events can shape genetic structure of subdivided animal populations. The gray wolf (Canis lupus) was extirpated from most of Europe, but recently recolonized big part of its historical range. An exceptionally dynamic expansion of wolf population is observed in the western part of the Great European Plain. Nonetheless, genetic consequences of this process have not yet been fully understood. We aimed to assess genetic diversity of this recently established wolf population in Western Poland (WPL), determine its origin and provide novel data regarding the population genetic structure of the grey wolf in Central Europe. We utilized both spatially explicit and non-explicit Bayesian clustering approaches, as well as a model-independent, multivariate method DAPC, to infer genetic structure in large dataset (881 identified individuals) of wolf microsatellite genotypes. To put the patterns observed in studied population into a broader biogeographic context we also analyzed a mtDNA control region fragment widely used in previous studies. In comparison to a source population, we found slightly reduced allelic richness and heterozygosity in the newly recolonized areas west of the Vistula river. We discovered relatively strong west-east structuring in lowland wolves, probably reflecting founder-flush and allele surfing during range expansion, resulting in clear distinction of WPL, eastern lowland and Carpathian genetic groups. Interestingly, wolves from recently recolonized mountainous areas (Sudetes Mts, SW Poland) clustered together with lowland, but not Carpathian wolf populations. We also identified an area in Central Poland that seems to be a melting pot of western, lowland eastern and Carpathian wolves. We conclude that the process of dynamic recolonization of Central European lowlands lead to the formation of a new, genetically distinct wolf population. Together with the settlement and establishment of packs in mountains by lowland wolves and vice versa, it suggests that demographic dynamics and possibly anthropogenic barriers rather than ecological factors (e.g. natal habitat-biased dispersal patterns) shape the current wolf genetic structure in Central Europe.

In central Europe, wolves Canis lupus prey on wild ungulates - main game species and occasionally kill livestock. The recovery of wolf population across the continent coincides with an increasing incidence of illegal killing, which level remains unknown. We analysed the illegal killing of wolves in Poland, where the species is strictly protected since 1998. We opportunistically collected data on wolves illegally shot and snared from 2002 to 2020, revealing their geographical extent and sex and age structure. Furthermore, we estimated their mortality rate due to illegal shooting on the basis of 16 GPS/GSM collared individuals between 2014 and 2020. We recorded 54 illegally shot and 37 snared wolves. The majority (63.7%) were killed between 2017 and 2020, mostly in Western Poland. The sex structure was similar between shot and snared individuals. In both groups, the wolves over one-year old prevailed, although there were 18 pups among shot wolves. We identified 6 shot and 3 snared breeders. Out of 16 GPS/GSM collared individuals, six were shot giving the mortality rate of 0.33 per year. Simulations revealed that the pooled number of wolves illegally shot in Poland annually, is between 147 and 1134 (99% highest density interval) or 216 and 1000 (95%). In six out of seven cases, in which the person who shot a wolf was eventually sentenced, hunters were responsible. We conclude that the present regulations concerning the prevention of illegal killing, pursuing and punishing the perpetrators of the illegal killing of wolves, require urgent improvements in order to effectively mitigate the problem.