Lifelong non-invasive genetic monitoring of a philopatric female wolf in the Tuscan Apennines, Italy

Wolves (Canis lupus), like most wild carnivores, are elusive and usually live at low density; this makes it challenging to monitor
specific individuals through time. Non-invasive genetic sampling, when protracted over a long period and a sufficiently
large geographic scale, has revealed an effective tool to follow individual patterns in a population.
During a long-term project focused on the monitoring of presence and distribution of wolf packs in the Tuscan Apennines
in Italy, we have followed the destiny of a single female wolf (F82) exclusively by the analysis of microsatellite multilocus genotypes
obtained from non-invasive samples (n = 118 including scats, hair and blood residuals) collected from 2003 to 2014. From
the natal pack, she dispersed to a neighboring area where she established a new territory together with an unrelated male.
The pair persisted for 8 years, mating at least twice and occupying a territory of a minimum size of 60–80 km2.
In December 2014, the carcass of F82 was found victim of a car accident. Her estimated age at death was at least 11 years
(the time elapsed between the first and last samplings).
This record represents one of the very few instances of free-ranging wild wolves monitored for such a long period in Europe
and her lifespan represents the longest ever recorded in the old continent.