MOLECULAR GENETIC INDENTIFICATION OF THE INVASIVE SPECIES – ASIAN JACKAL (CANIS AUREUS) IN THE TERRITORY OF BELARUS

An ordinary jackal (Canis aureus Linnaeus, 1758) is a mammal species of the Canidae family that has been characterized by a rapid expansion of the range in recent decades. In Belarus, the first report on the registration of the jackal appeared in 2012 and concerned an animal that was found in the southeast of the Brest region at the end of 2011. However, this finding was not scientifically confirmed at that time. The purpose of this work was to establish by means of molecular genetic methods the species affiliation of “jackal-like” individuals hunted at different times in the territory of Belarus. Molecular genetic studies conducted on the biomaterial of three animals with unclear species affiliation confirmed the fact of the first registration of the Asian jackal in the territory of Belarus in December 2011. It is given that an Asian jackal has a connection with the Balkan distribution center. The other two “jackal-like” individuals were the representatives of the species Canis lupus on the maternal line. However, it is possible that their morphological features unusual for wolves are a consequence of their hybridization with domestic dogs. This requires a further careful study based on the nuclear genome.