Wolf-dog hybridization: Population structure confounds genetic assignment and hybrid classification
Abstract
Accurate hybrid detection is increasingly important for conservation, yet genetic assignment can be strongly biased when structured populations are analyzed as if they were homogeneous. This problem is especially relevant in recolonizing systems, where individuals from differentiated source populations meet and admix. We present and evaluate a monitoring-compatible framework that accounts for population structure before testing for hybridization, without relying on reference populations from outside the study area. Using four years of routine wolf monitoring in Czechia, a Central European contact zone of differentiated lineages, we show that ignoring population structure can inflate admixture and generate false signals of hybridization. Population-specific calibration combined with independent validation resolved ambiguous assignments and provided no evidence for ongoing wolf-dog introgression within the monitored wolf population. Our results demonstrate that population structure must be explicitly considered when interpreting hybridization signals and provide a practical framework for conservation monitoring in other structured wildlife populations.
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BibTeX
@article{cetkovska2026wolfdog,
title = {{Wolf-dog hybridization: Population structure confounds genetic assignment and hybrid classification}},
author = {Ema Cetkovská and Kristýna Eliášová and Jana Šrutová and Nikola Tkáčová and Petr Matějů and Jindřiška Jelínková and Miroslav Kutal and Aleš Vorel and Carsten Nowak and Pavel Hulva and Barbora Černá Bolfíková},
journal = {iScience},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.isci.2026.117980},
url = {https://www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(26)03363-8},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Wolf-dog hybridization: Population structure confounds genetic assignment and hybrid classification
AU - Ema Cetkovská
AU - Kristýna Eliášová
AU - Jana Šrutová
AU - Nikola Tkáčová
AU - Petr Matějů
AU - Jindřiška Jelínková
AU - Miroslav Kutal
AU - Aleš Vorel
AU - Carsten Nowak
AU - Pavel Hulva
AU - Barbora Černá Bolfíková
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/23
JO - iScience
DO - 10.1016/j.isci.2026.117980
UR - https://www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(26)03363-8
AB - Accurate hybrid detection is increasingly important for conservation, yet genetic assignment can be strongly biased when structured populations are analyzed as if they were homogeneous. This problem is especially relevant in recolonizing systems, where individuals from differentiated source populations meet and admix. We present and evaluate a monitoring-compatible framework that accounts for population structure before testing for hybridization, without relying on reference populations from outside the study area. Using four years of routine wolf monitoring in Czechia, a Central European contact zone of differentiated lineages, we show that ignoring population structure can inflate admixture and generate false signals of hybridization. Population-specific calibration combined with independent validation resolved ambiguous assignments and provided no evidence for ongoing wolf-dog introgression within the monitored wolf population. Our results demonstrate that population structure must be explicitly considered when interpreting hybridization signals and provide a practical framework for conservation monitoring in other structured wildlife populations.
SN - 2589-0042
ER -