Caucasian Admixture In Two Ojibwa Indian Communities In Ontario

Two Ojibwa groups in Ontario, Canada were examined for the amount of Caucasian ancestry detectable in each population. The isolated Pikangikum Band in northwestern Ontario has been exposed to continuous European contact only since 1933. In contrast, the Wikwemikong Band on Manitoulin Island in the northeastern part of Lake Huron has been exposed to Caucasians for over three hundred years. Serological analysis revealed the presence of the "Caucasian" alíeles A², B, r, Lua, Gm³,⁵,¹¹, Pe, K, and AK² in Wikwemikong, while only A² was definitely present in Pikangikum, confined to a single individual. European admixture in the latter community has been negligible. The Wikwemikong admixture estimates calculated for the seven loci were statistically homogeneous, and the mean amount of Caucasian ancestry detected in this Ojibwa population is .2919 ± .0297. Critical evaluation of the estimates indicates that of all the loci used in calculating admixture, the Rh and Gm systems are the most informative in the measurement of gene flow. Admixture estimates obtained from published data for seven other Indian populations support these conclusions.