A Research Strategy to
Examine the Taxonomy of the
RED WOLF
Committee on Assistance to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on
Taxonomic Studies of the Red Wolf: A Review of Applications to Carry Out Research
and Development of a Research Strategy
Board on Life Sciences
Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources
Division on Earth and Life Studies
A Consensus Study Report of
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, DC
www.nap.edu
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This activity was supported by contracts between the National Academy of Sciences and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Contract No. 140F0918C0005. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-68147-6
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-68147-2
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/25891
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2020. A Research Strategy to Examine the Taxonomy of the Red Wolf. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25891.
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COMMITTEE ON ASSISTANCE TO THE U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE ON TAXONOMIC STUDIES OF THE RED WOLF: A REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS TO CARRY OUT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OF A RESEARCH STRATEGY
Members
JOSEPH TRAVIS, Chair, Florida State University
FRED W. ALLENDORF, University of Montana
LILIANA CORTÉS ORTIZ, University of Michigan
MELANIE CULVER, U.S. Geological Survey and University of Arizona
DIANE P. GENEREUX, Broad Institute
KELLEY HARRIS, University of Washington
ELAINE A. OSTRANDER (NAS), National Institutes of Health
P. DAVID POLLY, Indiana University Bloomington
ANNE C. STONE (NAS), Arizona State University
Staff
KEEGAN SAWYER, Study Co-Director
CAMILLA YANDOC ABLES, Study Co-Director
JESSICA DE MOUY, Senior Program Assistant
Consultant
ROBERT POOL, Editor
Sponsor
U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE
BOARD ON LIFE SCIENCES
Chair
BARBARA A. SCHAAL (NAS), Washington University in St. Louis
Members
A. ALONSO AGUIRRE, George Mason University
VALERIE H. BONHAM, Ropes & Gray LLP
DOMINIQUE BROSSARD, University of Wisconsin–Madison
NANCY D. CONNELL, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security
SEAN M. DECATUR, Kenyon College
SCOTT V. EDWARDS (NAS), Harvard University
GERALD L. EPSTEIN, National Defense University
ROBERT J. FULL, University of California, Berkeley
ROBERT NEWMAN, The Aspen Institute
STEPHEN J. O’BRIEN (NAS), Nova Southeastern University
LUCILA OHNO-MACHADO (NAM), University of California, San Diego
CLAIRE POMEROY (NAM), Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation
SUSAN RUNDELL SINGER, Rollins College
DAVID R. WALT (NAE, NAM), Harvard Medical School
PHYLLIS M. WISE (NAM), University of Colorado
Staff
KAVITA BERGER, Director
FRAN SHARPLES, Advisor
JO HUSBANDS, Scholar and Senior Project Director
KATHERINE BOWMAN, Senior Program Officer
ANDREA HODGSON, Senior Program Officer
KEEGAN SAWYER, Senior Program Officer
STEVEN MOSS, Program Officer
AUDREY THÉVENON, Program Officer
MATTHEW ANDERSON, Financial Business Partner
JESSICA DE MOUY, Senior Program Assistant
KOSSANA YOUNG, Senior Program Assistant
BOARD ON AGRICULTURE AND NATURAL RESOURCES
Chair
CHARLES W. RICE, Kansas State University
Members
ARISTOS ARISTIDOU (NAE), Cargill, Inc.
SHANE C. BURGESS, University of Arizona
SUSAN CAPALBO, Oregon State University
GAIL CZARNECKI-MAULDEN, Nestlé Purina PetCare
BERNADETTE DUNHAM, The George Washington University
GEBISA EJETA, Purdue University
JAMES S. FAMIGLIETTI, University of Saskatchewan
FRED GOULD (NAS), North Carolina State University
JOHN HAMER, Data Collective DCVC
DOUGLAS B. JACKSON-SMITH, The Ohio State University
JAMES W. JONES (NAE), University of Florida
ERMIAS KEBREAB, University of California, Davis
STEPHEN S. KELLEY, North Carolina State University
JAN E. LEACH, Colorado State University
ROBIN LOUGEE, Independent Consultant
JILL J. McCLUSKEY, Washington State University
KAREN I. PLAUT, Purdue University
RICARDO SALVADOR, Union of Concerned Scientists
V. ALARIC SAMPLE, George Mason University
Staff
ROBIN A. SCHOEN, Director
CAMILLA YANDOC ABLES, Senior Program Officer
KARA N. LANEY, Senior Program Officer
JENNA BRISCOE, Research Associate
SARAH KWON, Senior Program Assistant
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Preface
This report draws from a large scientific literature, not only the literature on red wolves, but also the general literature on species formation, hybridization and introgression, morphology, and tracing ancestry with population genomics. The answers to difficult, important questions usually lie at the confluence of many different intellectual streams, and understanding the red wolf is no exception to this rule. The committee’s work stands atop a broad foundation of biological research about the evidence necessary to understand the diversity of the various canid populations that may represent the red wolf lineage. The report is also based on the presentations offered to the committee by many scientific colleagues, the comments of those scientists who did not present to us but who generously answered specific questions addressed to them, and the thoughts of all those who contacted us through the study website.
I thank the members of the committee for their dedication and commitment to every phase of this report, including critically assessing a very large literature and sifting that literature to develop a research strategy for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The committee devoted considerable effort to explaining very complicated genomic and statistical issues and making the logic of the research strategy clear. On behalf of the committee, I thank the study co-director, Keegan Sawyer, for her leadership, insights, and masterful manner of persuading us to work ever harder, and I also thank study co-director, Camilla Yandoc Ables, for her guidance and assistance with many aspects of our work, especially her ability to translate some of our rough-hewn ideas for figures and flow charts into excellent aids for presentation. All of us on the committee are grateful to Jessica De Mouy for her support in organizing and conducting our meetings and for her help with all of the technical aspects of the report’s preparation.
On behalf of the committee, I thank all those who informed us about wolves and about the conceptual issues involved in tracing ancestry and discerning relationships among populations. Some of these scientists gave in-person presentations, others presented webinars, and still others responded to written queries. Appendix A is a list of these scientists and how they helped us. The
committee’s knowledge of the critical issues was deepened and broadened by the contributions of so many people, and our thinking was constantly challenged by each increment in our knowledge. Everyone who spoke or wrote to us was unfailingly generous with their time and gracious with their patience. The committee’s gratitude for so much effort cannot be overstated.
Joseph Travis, Chair
Committee on Assistance to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Taxonomic Studies of the Red Wolf: A Review of Applications to Carry Out Research and Development of a Research Strategy
Acknowledgment of Reviewers
This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspective and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Melissa Hawkins, Smithsonian Museum of Natural History
Jennifer Leonard, Estación Biológica de Doñana - CSIC
Jonathan Losos (NAS), Washington University in St. Louis
Roland Kays, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
Julie Meachen, Des Moines University
Michael Schwartz, U.S. Forest Service
Aaron Shafer, Trent University
Lisette Waits, University of Idaho
Jeff Wall, University of California, San Francisco
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report. The review of this report was overseen by Dr. Barbara A. Schaal (NAS) of Washington University in St. Louis and Dr. James A. Estes (NAS) of the University of California, Santa Cruz. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.
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Contents
Why Do More Research on the Red Wolf?
Committee’s Approach to Its Charge
2 MORPHOLOGY, BEHAVIOR, AND ECOLOGY
Conclusions and Recommendations
3 COLLECTING GENOMIC DATA FROM HISTORICAL AND ANCIENT CANIDS
Partial Versus Whole-Genome Data Collection
Data Analysis and Interpretation
Recent Research on Ancient North American Canids
4 GENOMIC ANALYSES OF EXTANT CANIDS
Data Analyses and Interpretation
Conclusions and Recommendations
5 SYNTHESIS OF RESEARCH STRATEGY
Components of the Research Strategy
Guiding Principles for the Research Strategy
A PUBLIC MEETING AND WEBINAR AGENDAS
B RED WOLF (CANIS RUFUS) MUSEUM SPECIMENS
C SUMMARY OF MUSEUM HOLDINGS OF KEY NORTH AMERICAN CANIDS