In 1992, an examination of the mitochondrial DNA (mDNA) of 26 grey wolf populations worldwide revealed that the Italian wolf has a unique mitochondrial haplotype (a mutation) not shared by any other grey wolf population. Further tests on grey wolf mDNA revealed that, unlike several European grey wolf populations, Italian wolves do not share haplotypes with either other grey wolves or domestic dogs. In 2010, a study compared the mDNA haplotypes of 24 ancient wolwes
