Roadkill young male wolf may provide key tissue for Türkiye’s genetic mapping project

By Ali Rıza Akkir and Onur Çadır

MUGLA, Türkiye (AA) – A tissue sample taken from a young male wolf killed in a road accident near the Fethiye district of southern Mugla province may contribute to ongoing efforts to map the genetic structure and diversity of wolves across Türkiye.

The wolf was found dead along the Fethiye-Antalya highway, and the incident was reported to the Fethiye Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks.

Experts from Mugla Sitki Kocman University’s Biodiversity Implementation and Research Center examined the animal and confirmed it was a young male wolf that died as a result of a vehicle collision.

Researchers told Anadolu that wolves have increasingly been approaching coastal cities in the Aegean and Mediterranean regions, particularly during winter months.

They said the primary reason is that wolves follow wild boars, which have become accustomed to being fed by humans and are therefore drawn closer to residential areas.

Experts warned that wolves approaching urban peripheries sometimes hybridize with stray domestic dogs. This can lead to genetic disruption in wolf populations, as well as behavioral changes such as reduced fear of humans.

Under natural conditions, wolves avoid humans and play a key role in maintaining ecosystem balance, the researchers said. However, in Türkiye, ongoing hybridization with dogs — through genetic or demographic swamping — poses a long-term threat to the integrity and survival of pure wolf populations.

Türkiye is conducting nationwide research to determine the genetic structure and diversity of wolves, assess the extent of hybridization with dogs, evaluate the genetic resilience of populations, and preserve their keystone role in ecosystems.

More than 3,000 camera traps deployed across the country monitor wildlife species, including wild sheep, bears, hyenas, red deer, roe deer, and wolves in Anatolia.

The Turkish gray wolf inhabits all major biomes in the country and preys on a variety of available prey. Its population is estimated at 5,000-7,000 individuals.

A nationwide research initiative titled “A Comprehensive Study on Wolves Across the Country: Spatial Genetics, Ecology, and Hybridization” is underway to support conservation efforts and improve understanding of wolf populations.

The project, led by Sakarya University’s Faculty of Science and funded by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TUBITAK), will continue through February 2028. It focuses on gene flow, habitat connectivity, geographic patterns and the effects of hybridization.

The study brings together researchers from Sakarya, Duzce, Koc and Balıkesir universities, as well as international collaborators from the University of Utah in the United States, the University of Zagreb in Croatia and Isfahan University of Technology in Iran.

* Writing by Selcuk Uysal.