Abstract Hybridisation between wolves and dogs is increasingly reported in Europe. Nonetheless, no systematic survey has ever been attempted at the continental scale. We made the first assessment of wolf-dog hybridisation (WDH) occurrence in Europe and analysed how the phenomenon is addressed by international legislation and managed at the country level. We found that WDH is reported in all nine extant European wolf populations, and in 21 out of 26 countries for which we received information. The two main international legal instruments (i.e., the Habitats Directive and the Bern Convention) do not explicitly mention the threat posed by hybridisation but do provide guidance promoting control of free-ranging wolf-dog hybrids. However, we recorded poor compliance with such recommendations in most European countries, and a lack of coordination in addressing WDH among countries sharing the same wolf population. Alarmingly, we revealed a lack of well-designed and implemented country-wide genetic surveys to detect and monitor hybridisation, both relevant pre-requisites to effectively implement WDH management. By recommending criteria for an operative definition of “hybrid”, we also suggest improvements to enhance WDH-related policy at the European scale.

中文翻译：

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欧洲自然保护协议需要明确解决狼狗杂交问题

摘要 欧洲越来越多地报道了狼和狗之间的杂交。尽管如此，从未尝试过在大陆范围内进行系统调查。我们首次评估了欧洲狼狗杂交 (WDH) 的发生情况，并分析了国际立法如何解决这一现象并在国家层面进行管理。我们发现所有 9 个现存的欧洲狼种群以及我们收到信息的 26 个国家中的 21 个都报告了 WDH。两个主要的国际法律文书（即《栖息地指令》和《伯尔尼公约》）没有明确提及杂交带来的威胁，但确实提供了促进控制自由放养的狼狗杂交的指导。然而，我们记录了大多数欧洲国家对此类建议的遵守情况不佳，共享相同狼群的国家之间在解决 WDH 问题上缺乏协调。令人担忧的是，我们发现缺乏精心设计和实施的全国性基因调查来检测和监测杂交，而这两个都是有效实施 WDH 管理的相关先决条件。通过推荐“混合”的操作定义标准，我们还建议改进以在欧洲范围内加强与 WDH 相关的政策。