Preserving the natural heritage of wolves: a multidisciplinary approach towards effective and socially acceptable management of wolf-dog hybridization across Europe

Anthropogenic hybridization (AH) is an increasing concern for global biodiversity conservation.

AH that involves domesticated animals, artificially selected for a suite of genetically determined morphological, physiological and behavioral traits, is expected to have deleterious consequences for the genomic integrity and viability of wild populations, such as the reduction in fitness and adaptive potential or the loss of unique combinations of genes and genotypes that have unique evolutionary history.

By focusing at the species level, we use the wolf (Canis lupus) as a case study in the light of potentially increasing rates of wolf-dog hybridization (WDH).

The practical goal is to provide science-based support for effective and socially acceptable WDH management across Europe.

Due to the controversial nature of WDH management, the objective of the Swedish contribution is to provide an integrated psychological and social-anthropological perspective to set the foundation for social acceptability of alternative management strategies. The empirical studies combines qualitative and quantitative approaches.

The anthropological component focuses on understanding the perceptions and meanings attributed to WDH by various stakeholders, maintaining emphasis on the broader context in which these develop.

The psychological component goes in-depth in the human individual processes that shapes people’s emotional responses to the presence of domesticated and wild animals and their management.