Abstract
Reproductive variables constitute a key information to assess population dynamics and inform wildlife management. We estimated wolf (Canis lupus) litter size and reproductive phenology in Spain between 1987 and 2015 based on foetus or placental scar counts on 75 females. Three out of twenty-five subadults (12%) and 32 out of 41 adults (78%) were classified as reproductive females. The mean litter size was estimated in 35 females, being 5.67 in subadults, based on placental scar counting, and 5.54 to 6.00 in adults, estimated by foetus counting or placental scar counting, respectively. Pregnancy was observed in 13 adults, which were sampled in April (N = 7), May (N = 4) and June (N = 2). Hence, the main mating season was estimated to occur between February and March. To our knowledge, the referred data constitutes the most extensive and updated information available on wolf reproduction in Spain until today.
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs10344-021-01473-7/MediaObjects/10344_2021_1473_Fig1_HTML.png)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs10344-021-01473-7/MediaObjects/10344_2021_1473_Fig2_HTML.png)
Data Availability
An excel file with the raw data is available as supplementary material, online.
Code availability
NA.
References
Allen SH (1983) Comparison of red fox litter sizes determined from counts of embryos and placental scars. J Wildl Manag 47:860–863. https://doi.org/10.2307/3808627
Asa CS, Valdespin C (1998) Canid reproductive biology: an integration of proximate mechanisms and ultimate causes. Am Zool 38:251–259. https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/38.1.251
Blanco JC (2017) Lobo – Canis lupus. In: Salvador A, Barja I (eds) Enciclopedia Virtual de los Vertebrados Españoles, vol Versión 5. Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid
Boertje RD, Stephenson RO (1992) Effects of ungulate availability on wolf reproductive potential in Alaska. Can J Zool 70:2441–2443. https://doi.org/10.1139/z92-328
Boitani L (2018) Canis lupus. In: IUCN Red List Threat. Species. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/3746/144226239. Accessed 7 Oct 2019
Calmaestra RG, Muñoz J, García F (2017) Líneas de trabajo del Ministerio de Agricultura y Pesca, Alimentación y Medio Ambiente (MAPAMA) en relación al lobo en España: coordinación del censo nacional 2012-2014 y evaluación de nuevas técnicas de protección del ganado. In: Sáenz de Buruaga M, Llaneza L (eds) Segundo Seminario sobre el Lobo (Canis lupus) en el Parque Nacional de los Picos de Europa: veinte años después. SECEM - Consorcio Interautonómico PNPE, Málaga, pp 67–80 ISBN: 978-84-697-7220-1
Chapron G, Kaczensky P, Linnell J et al (2014) Recovery of large carnivores in Europe’s modern human-dominated landscapes. Science (80- ) 346:1517–1519
Elmeros M, Pedersen V, Wincentz TL (2003) Placental scar counts and litter size estimations in ranched red foxes (Vulpes vulpes). Mamm Biol 68:391–393. https://doi.org/10.1078/1616-5047-00108
Fernández-Gil A, Quevedo M, Barrientos LM, Nuño A, Naves J, de Gabriel M, Naves J, Revilla E (2020) Pack size in humanized landscapes: the Iberian wolf population. Wildl Biol 2020:wlb.00594. https://doi.org/10.2981/wlb.00594
Gipson PS, Ballard WB, Nowak RM, Mech LD (2000) Accuracy and precision of estimating age of gray wolves by tooth wear. J Wildl Manag 64:752. https://doi.org/10.2307/3802745
IUCN/SSC Specialist Group (2019) Wolf - Canis lupus. https://www.lcie.org/Large-carnivores/Wolf. Accessed 17 Dec 2019
Jdeidi T, Masseti M, Nader I, de Smet K, Cuzin F (2010) Canis lupus. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/3746/10048228. Accessed 7 Oct 2019
Jędrzejewska B, Jędrzejewski W, Bunevich AN, Miłkowski L, Okarma H (1996) Population dynamics of wolves Canis lupus in Białowieża Primeval Forest (Poland and Belarus) in relation to hunting by humans, 1847–1993. Mammal Rev 26:103–126. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2907.1996.tb00149.x
Landon DB, Waite CA, Peterson RO, Mech LD (1998) Evaluation of age determination techniques for gray wolves. J Wildl Manag 62:674. https://doi.org/10.2307/3802343
Lentfer JW, Sanders DK (1973) Notes on the captive wolf (Canis lupus) colony, Barrow, Alaska. Can J Zool 51:623–627. https://doi.org/10.1139/z73-090
Linström E (1981) Reliability of placental scar counts in the Red fox (Vulpes vulpes L.) with special reference to fading of the scars. Mammal Rev 11:137–149. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2907.1981.tb00002.x
McNay ME, Stephenson TR, Dale BW (2006) Diagnosing pregnancy, in utero litter size, and fetal growth with ultrasound in wild, free-ranging wolves. J Mammal 87:85–92. https://doi.org/10.1644/05-mamm-a-057r1.1
Mech LD (1970) Chapter IV: Reproduction and family life. In: The Wolf: the ecology and behaviour of an endangered species. Natural History Press, New York, pp 111–148
Mech LD (1975) Disproportionate sex ratios of wolf pups. J Wildl Manag 39:737. https://doi.org/10.2307/3800235
Mech LD (1977) Productivity, mortality, and population trends of wolves in northeastern Minnesota. J Mammal 58:559–574. https://doi.org/10.2307/1380004
Mech LD (1995) A ten-year history of the demography and productivity of an Arctic wolf pack. Arctic 48:329–332. https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic1255
Mech LD, Barber-Meyer SM, Erb J (2016) Wolf (Canis lupus) generation time and proportion of current breeding females by age. PLoS One 11:1–13
Müller A, Silva E, Santos N, Thompson G (2011) Domestic dog origin of canine distemper virus in free-ranging wolves in Portugal as revealed by hemagglutinin gene characterization. J Wildl Dis 47:725–729. https://doi.org/10.7589/0090-3558-47.3.725
Rausch RA (1967) Some aspects of the population ecology of wolves, Alaska. Integr Comp Biol 7:253–265. https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/7.2.253
Ruette S, Albaret M (2011) Reproduction of the red fox Vulpes vulpes in western France: does staining improve estimation of litter size from placental scar counts? Eur J Wildl Res 57:555–564. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-010-0465-y
Santos JPV, Vicente J, Carvalho J et al (2018) Determining changes in the nutritional condition of red deer in Mediterranean ecosystems: effects of environmental, management and demographic factors. Ecol Indic 87:261–271. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2017.12.039
Seal US, Plotka ED, Packard JM, Mech LD (1979) Endocrine correlates of reproduction in the wolf. I. Serum Progesterone, Estradiol and LH during the Estrous Cycle1. Biol Reprod 21:1057–1066. https://doi.org/10.1095/biolreprod21.5.1057
Sidorovich VE, Stolyarov VP, Vorobei NN, Ivanova NV, Jędrzejewska B (2007) Litter size, sex ratio, and age structure of gray wolves, Canis lupus, in relation to population fluctuations in northern Belarus. Can J Zool 85:295–300. https://doi.org/10.1139/Z07-001
Strand O, Skogland T, Kvam T (1995) Placental scars and estimation of litter size: an experimental test in the arctic fox. J Mammal 76:1220–1225. https://doi.org/10.2307/1382615
Acknowledgements
We are indebted to the rangers and the staff of the Wildlife Services of Regional Governments of Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla y León and Galicia. Our acknowledgment to Dr. Luis Fidalgo and his team at the University of Santiago de Compostela for their help.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
EF-C, CG and LL designed the study; EF-C, AG-G and LL performed the analyses; EF-C wrote the first draft and all authors commented and edited the final version.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary Information
ESM 1
(XLSX 19 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ferreras-Colino, E., García-Garrigós, A., Gortázar, C. et al. Wolf (Canis lupus) litter size in Spain. Eur J Wildl Res 67, 31 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-021-01473-7
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-021-01473-7