An Updated Checklist of the Mammal Species of Spain with Notes on Exclusions, Additions, and Taxonomic Changes

Telomere shortening with age has been documented in many organisms, but few studies have reported telomere length measurements in amphibians, and no information is available for growth after metamorphosis, nor in wild populations. We provide both cross-sectional and longitudinal evidence of net telomere attrition with age in a wild amphibian population of natterjack toads (Epidalea calamita). Based on age-estimation by skeletochronology and qPCR telomere length measurements in the framework of an individual-based monitoring programme, we confirmed telomere attrition in recaptured males. Our results support that toads experience telomere attrition throughout their ontogeny, and that most attrition occurs during the first 1-2 years. We did not find associations between telomere length and inbreeding or body condition. Our results on telomere length dynamics under natural conditions confirm telomere shortening with age in amphibians and provide quantification of wide telomere length variation within and among age-classes in a wild breeding population.

Conservation of genetic resources for sustainable aquaculture

The Red-crowned crane (Grus japonensis) is one of the largest birds in East Asia which is among the rarest and endangered cranes in the world. In order to enhance population management and further conservation of Red-crowned cranes, researchers compared behavioural changes from wild population to captive population. Meanwhile, researchers also compared the artificial inbred population with the natural normal populations. In this research, five main behavioural patterns of Red-crowned cranes include resting, moving, preening, feeding and alerting were identified by all occurrence sampling and instantaneous scanning sampling methods with 5-10 min intervals. The referred wild and captive populations were concluded from the previous publications and the artificial inbred populations were observed in Hangzhou Wildlife Park (China) during August and September, 2009. As a result, researchers found the difference (p>0.05) between wild and captive populations is not significant. However, preening in captive population is higher than in wild population. The wild population spent more time for resting compared to captive population yet feeding is the most time-spent behaviours for both populations. Furthermore, behavioural patterns between normal and inbred populations are found significantly different (p<0.05). Alerting and resting behaviours are significantly higher in the normal population than in inbred population. Moreover, moving is the dominant behaviour of inbred population but feeding is taken the most time by normal population.

Simple SummaryThe trading and collection of wildlife for pets is one of the main threats for the conservation of some species worldwide. Assessing the human dimension of it is essential to improve our understanding of its drivers, which may help inform the design of effective species conservation strategies. We address this issue using the Mediterranean spur-thighed tortoise (Testudo graeca) as a case study. This species has sharply declined in its native range, tortoise trade and non-commercial collection for pets being some of the main threats. In fact, both uses have been documented in southern Europe and northern Africa, although this species has been protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) since 1975. Our study, which was based on a questionnaire survey, (i) demonstrated that many people in Rabat city (Morocco) and surroundings keep tortoises as pets (55%; n = 480), most of which had been collected directly from wild populations, and (ii) highlighted the limited ecological and biological knowledge of tortoise owners (mainly of those living in the city of Rabat) on the species. Our findings evidence how both the sociological context and the role of consumers/harvesters play a major part in this problem with international projection. We discussed deeply how tortoise non-commercial collection might affect its conservation and welfare, and recommended appropriate actions that focus on strengthening collection bans.The trading and collection of wild animals as pets may be cause for concern regarding animal welfare and species conservation. These concerns can be exemplified by Mediterranean spur-thighed tortoise (Testudo graeca), a long-living species whose use as pets is long established. The human dimension plays a major role in the wildlife for the pet collection, and is particularly important in countries like Morocco, where this might pose a threat to the conservation of the species involved. This study, which is based on a questionnaire survey (n = 480 participants), documents the fact that many people in Morocco keep tortoises as pets: 55% of the participants in the survey and over two tortoises/person. Importantly, most captive tortoises, particularly juveniles, had been collected directly from wild populations by their owners (42%, n = 264). In general, the tortoise owners had limited knowledge of their tortoises’ habits and requirements, although rural people were more likely to acknowledge that the tortoise is a wild and threatened species. Our study reveals that non-commercial collection is a common activity in Morocco that may threaten wild tortoise populations and hence species conservation, and it could have consequences regarding the welfare of the animals. We were also able to identify the profile of people towards whom education campaigns should be directed in order to reduce the number of tortoises collected from wild populations. Additional field research should also be conducted to quantify the impact of pet collection on wild tortoise populations.

Artificial selection experiments are a powerful tool in evolutionary biology. Selecting individuals based on multimarker genotypes (genomic selection) has several advantages over phenotype‐based selection but has, so far, seen very limited use outside animal and plant breeding. Genomic selection depends on the markers tagging the causal loci that underlie the selected trait. Because the number of necessary markers depends, among other factors, on effective population size, genomic selection may be in practice not feasible in wild populations as most wild populations have much higher effective population sizes than domesticated populations. However, the current possibilities of cost‐effective high‐throughput genotyping could overcome this limitation and thereby make it possible to apply genomic selection also in wild populations. Using a unique dataset of about 2000 wild great tits (Parus major), a small passerine bird, genotyped on a 650 k SNP chip we calculated genomic breeding values for egg‐laying date using the so‐called GBLUP approach. In this approach, the pedigree‐based relatedness matrix of an “animal model,” a special form of the mixed model, is replaced by a marker‐based relatedness matrix. Using the marker‐based relatedness matrix, the model seemed better able to disentangle genetic and permanent environmental effects. We calculated the accuracy of genomic breeding values by correlating them to the phenotypes of individuals whose phenotypes were excluded from the analysis when estimating the genomic breeding values. The obtained accuracy was about 0.20, with very little effect of the used genomic relatedness estimator but a strong effect of the number of SNPs. The obtained accuracy is lower than typically seen in domesticated species but considerable for a trait with low heritability (∼0.2) as avian breeding time. Our results show that genomic selection is possible also in wild populations with potentially many applications, which we discuss here.

BackgroundInbreeding is among the major concerns in management of local livestock populations. The effective population size of these populations tends to be small, which enhances the risk of fitness reduction and extinction. High-density SNP data make it possible to undertake novel approaches in conservation genetics of endangered breeds and wild populations.A total of 97 representative samples of domestic and wild pig populations from the Iberian Peninsula, subjected to different levels of threat with extinction, were genotyped with a 60 K SNP panel. Data analyses based on: (i) allele frequency differences; (ii) linkage disequilibrium and (iii) runs of homozygosity were integrated to study population relationships, inbreeding and demographic history.ResultsThe domestic pigs analyzed belonged to local Spanish and Portuguese breeds: Iberian ─ including the variants Retinto Iberian, Negro Iberian and Manchado de Jabugo ─, Bisaro and Chato Murciano. The population structure and persistence of phase analysis suggested high genetic relations between Iberian variants, with recent crossbreeding of Manchado de Jabugo with other pig populations. Chato Murciano showed a high frequency of long runs of homozygosity indicating recent inbreeding and reflecting the recent bottleneck reported by historical records. The Chato Murciano and the Manchado de Jabugo breeds presented the lowest effective population sizes in accordance with their status of highly inbred breeds. The Iberian wild boar presented a high frequency of short runs of homozygosity indicating past small population size but no signs of recent inbreeding. The Iberian breed showed higher genetic similarities with Iberian wild boar than the other domestic breeds.ConclusionsHigh-density SNP data provided a consistent overview of population structure, demographic history and inbreeding of minority breeds and wild pig populations from the Iberian Peninsula. Despite the very different background of the populations used, we found a good agreement between the different analyses. Our results are also in agreement with historical reports and provide insight in the events that shaped the current genetic variation of pig populations from the Iberian Peninsula. The results exposed will aid to design and implement strategies for the future management of endangered minority pig breeds and wild populations.

The aoudad (Ammotragus lervia) is a Vulnerable bovid endemic of North Africa. Although legally protected in almost every country of its native distribution, the aoudad continues to be hunted for meat and trophy in both North Africa and the countries where it has been introduced. The species was subject to past translocations planned irrespectively of the genetic diversity and local adaptations of source and receiving populations, and no management or conservation units have ever been designed. We aim to provide here important insights on the taxonomy of the aoudad subspecies and the genetic diversity of most of its wild and captive populations. We collected 127 invasive and non-invasive samples from five of the six subspecies of aoudad recognized to date. We could successfully retrieve genetic data for 74 samples. Of those, 36 provided both nuclear (11 microsatellites) and mitochondrial (Cyt-b) data, 31 just nuclear data, and six just mitochondrial data. We implement Bayesian approaches to infer the population structure and phylogenetic relationships between the different populations/subspecies and backtrack the maternal lineages of introduced individuals in European populations. Our results support the presence of four genetically different wild populations, corresponding to three distinct mitochondrial lineages plus a fourth group restricted to Egypt identified by the nuclear markers. We also provide genetic evidence on the affiliation of some introduced European populations with respect to the native ones. The genetic diversity instead of variation within all wild populations was low. This might be a consequence of small effective population size and/or high inbreeding degree, probably related to hunting, decline in habitat availability and quality (i.e. overgrazing, and frequent drought), and high inbreeding degree. Our results provide important information for the aoudad conservation, including reintroductions and reinforcement actions of wild populations, and the exchange of individuals among captive stocks.

Two commonly used techniques for estimating the effect of genes on traits in wild populations are the candidate gene approach and quantitative genetic analyses. However, whether these two approaches measure the same underlying processes remains unresolved. Here, we use these two methods to test whether they are alternative or complementary approaches to understanding genetic variation in the timing of reproduction - a key trait involved in adaptation to climate change - in wild tit populations. Our analyses of the candidate gene Clock show weak correlates with timing variables in blue tits, but no association in great tits, confirming earlier results. Quantitative genetic analyses revealed very low levels of both direct (female) and indirect (male) additive genetic variation in timing traits for both species, in contrast to previous studies on these traits, and much lower than generally assumed. Hence, neither method suggests strong genetic effects on the timing of breeding in birds, and further work should seek to assess the generality of these conclusions. We discuss how differences in the genetic control of traits, species life-history and confounding environmental variables may determine how useful integrating these two techniques is to understand the phenotypic variation in wild populations.

&lt;em&gt;Abstract.&lt;/em&gt;—The white sturgeon population &lt;em&gt;Acipenser transmontanus&lt;/em&gt; in the Kootenai River was listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in 1994 due to postglacial isolation and the virtual lack of recruitment since 1974. The Kootenai River White Sturgeon Conservation Aquaculture Program was initiated to preserve genetic variability, begin rebuilding natural age-class structure, and prevent extinction while measures are identified and implemented to restore natural recruitment. The program is part of a comprehensive recovery strategy detailed in the USFWS recovery plan for the Kootenai River population of white sturgeon. A breeding plan, including culture methods to minimize potential detrimental effects of conventional stocking programs, has been implemented to guide recovery, population management, and the systematic collection and spawning of wild adults before they are lost from the wild breeding population. Between 1990 and 2000, 33 families were produced from the mating of 51 wild white sturgeon broodstock. Genetic analysis indicated that five mitochondrial control region length variants represented in the wild white sturgeon population were represented in similar frequencies in the wild white sturgeon broodstock. A total of 2,702 hatchery-reared white sturgeon were released into the Kootenai River between 1992 and 1999. White sturgeon juveniles approved for release had no diagnostic disease symptoms and less than or equal to 10% prevalence of endemic pathogens. A total of 398 hatchery-reared fish were recaptured in the wild (14.7% of 2,702 stocked; single recapture events) during the 1993–1999 sampling period. The Kootenai River Conservation Aquaculture Program is currently meeting its objectives of reducing the threat of population extinction by providing frequent year classes from native broodstock, representing inherent within-population genetic diversity in its broodstock and progeny, and minimizing the introduction of disease into the recipient wild population.

The effects of gastrointestinal tract microbiota (GTM) on host physiology and health have been the subject of considerable interest in recent years. While a variety of captive bred species have been used in experiments, the extent to which GTM of captive and/or inbred individuals resembles natural composition and variation in wild populations is poorly understood. Using 454 pyrosequencing, we performed 16S rDNA GTM barcoding for 30 wild house mice (Mus musculus) and wild-derived inbred strain mice belonging to two subspecies (M. m. musculus and M. m. domesticus). Sequenced individuals were selected according to a 2 × 2 experimental design: wild (14) vs. inbred origin (16) and M. m. musculus (15) vs. M. m. domesticus (15). We compared alpha diversity (i.e. number of operational taxonomic units - OTUs), beta diversity (i.e. interindividual variability) and microbiota composition across the four groups. We found no difference between M. m. musculus and M. m. domesticus subspecies, suggesting low effect of genetic differentiation between these two subspecies on GTM structure. Both inbred and wild populations showed the same level of microbial alpha and beta diversity; however, we found strong differentiation in microbiota composition between wild and inbred populations. Relative abundance of ~ 16% of OTUs differed significantly between wild and inbred individuals. As laboratory mice represent the most abundant model for studying the effects of gut microbiota on host metabolism, immunity and neurology, we suggest that the distinctness of laboratory-kept mouse microbiota, which differs from wild mouse microbiota, needs to be considered in future biomedical research.

In this study, inbreeding population was constructed by full-sib mating of “Huang Hai No. 2” core population in Fenneropenaeus chinensis. Growth and survival of three different stages were studied in three populations, including selected population, inbreeding population, and wild population. The growth experimental results show that body weight of selected population in all the three growth stages was significantly higher than those of inbreeding population and wild population (P < 0.05). At day 90, body weight of the selected population increased by 13.1 and 19.4%, compared with those of inbreeding population and wild population and the specific growth rate (SGR) for body weight of three populations were 2.24, 2.16, and 2.11. Coefficient of variation of body weight among the three populations were different; the highest was 23.75% in the selected population and the lowest was 16.76% in the wild population, which showed that there is potentiality for further selection. The survival results indicated that the difference of survival of the three populations were significant (P < 0.05), that of the selected population increased by 10.78 and 14.20%, compared with those of inbreeding population and wild population, and the average survival rate of the three populations were 74, 66.8, and 64.8%, respectively. Full-sib matings revealed that the amount of inbreeding depression of body weight varied from −7.68 to −11.53%, and the estimated average inbreeding depression coefficient was −4.61 per 10% increase of inbreeding coefficient of F. For survival trait, the estimated average inbreeding depression coefficient ranged from −2.62–3.81%, and the inbreeding depression was −1.05 per 10% increase of inbreeding coefficient of F, lower than the estimate obtained for growth. These results suggest that selection works well in the breeding program of F. chinensis, and inbreeding especially full-sib matings should be avoided in the following breeding programs.

Simple SummaryAlthough infection with herpesvirus in owls has commonly been described as a highly lethal disease, there is very little information about the presence of herpesvirus and its potential impact in living owls in wild populations. Our study detected herpesvirus in a breeding population of Ural owls, which showed no clinical signs of illness nor productivity deviances (i.e., in clutch and brood size). Herpesvirus was detected in Ural owl adults and chicks, but not in a young tawny owl (despite the fact that they were in same nest and in persistent contact). Furthermore, herpesviruses were also detected in yellow-necked mice as both owls’ main prey. However, comparison of the herpesviruses detected showed that different herpesviruses are present in the owls and mice. The results of this study show that herpesvirus may be present in a Ural owl breeding population without any consequences on health and breeding performance. However, in the case of tawny owls, it seems that they are not susceptible to infection, which could be related to their polymorphism. It seems that small rodents are not a source of herpesvirus infection in owls and that the probable herpesvirus transmission pathway takes place intraspecifically, mostly from adults to young.Birds are a frequent host of a large variety of herpesviruses, and infections in them may go unnoticed or may result in fatal disease. In wild breeding populations of owls, there is very limited information about the presence, impact, and potential transmission of herpesvirus. The herpesvirus partial DNA polymerase gene was detected using polymerase chain reaction in oropharyngeal swabs of 16 out of 170 owls examined that were captured in or near nest boxes. Herpesvirus was detected in Ural owls (Strix uralensis), in both adults and young, but not in tawny owls (Strix aluco). In yellow-necked mice (Apodemus flavicollis), as the main prey of tawny owls and Ural owls in the area, herpesvirus was detected in the organs of 2 out of 40 mice captured at the same locations as the owls. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the herpesvirus sequences detected in the Ural owls differed from the herpesvirus sequences detected in the yellow-necked mice. The results indicate that herpesvirus infection exists in the breeding wild Ural owl population. However, herpesvirus-infected owls did not show any clinical or productivity deviances and, based on a phylogenetic comparison of detected herpesvirus sequences and sequences obtained from Genbank database, it seems that mice and other rodents are not the source of owl infections. The most probable transmission pathway is intraspecific, especially from adults to their chicks, but the origin of herpesvirus in owls remains to be investigated.

The Swedish wolf population (Canis lupus) descends from five individuals and is isolated and highly inbred with an average inbreeding coefficient of 0.27. In addition, inbreeding depression has led to reduced litter size and a high frequency of spinal disorders. To achieve the management goal of reducing the mean level of inbreeding, introductions into the wild population from a zoo conservation breeding program have been proposed by authorities. We used pedigree data of the wild and zoo populations to evaluate the extent to which the captive population can contribute genetic variation to the wild one. We measure genetic variation as founder alleles and founder genome equivalents. The two populations have three founders in common, but in spite of this common ancestry, our results show a potential to almost double genetic variation from 11.2 to 21.1 founder alleles. Similarly, the number of founder genome equivalents in the wild population can increase from the present 1.8 to 3.2, but this requires that almost 50 % of the wild gene pool consists of genes from the zoo population. Average kinship in the joint zoo and wild population is 0.15, which is above the management target of 0.1. Genetic contribution from the zoo has the potential to improve, but not solve, the genetically precarious situation of the wild population.

BackgroundIn the laboratory, the Drosophila melanogaster heat shock protein Hsp90 can buffer the phenotypic effects of genetic variation. Laboratory experiments either manipulate Hsp90 activity pharmacologically, or they induce mutations with strong effects in the gene Hsp83, the single-copy fly gene encoding Hsp90. It is unknown whether observations from such laboratory experiments are relevant in the wild.ResultsWe here study naturally occurring mutations in Hsp83, and their effects on fitness and phenotypic buffering in flies derived from wild populations. We examined more than 4500 flies from 42 Drosophila populations distributed world-wide for insertions or deletions of mobile DNA in or near the Hsp83 gene. The insertions we observed occur at low population frequencies, and reduce Hsp83 gene expression. In competition experiments, mutant flies performed much more poorly than wild-type flies. Mutant flies were also significantly less fecund and shorter-lived than wild-type flies, as well as less well buffered against cryptic deleterious variation, as we show through inbreeding experiments. Specifically, in Hsp83 mutant flies female fecundity dropped to much lower levels after inbreeding than in wild-type flies. At even slightly elevated temperatures, inbred mutant Hsp83 populations went extinct, whereas inbred wild-type populations persisted.ConclusionsOur work shows that Hsp90, a regulator of the stress response and of signaling, helps buffer deleterious variation in fruit flies derived from wild population, and that its buffering role becomes even more important under heat stress.

BackgroundIn the laboratory, the Drosophila melanogaster heat shock protein Hsp90 can buffer the phenotypic effects of genetic variation. Laboratory experiments either manipulate Hsp90 activity pharmacologically, or they induce mutations with strong effects in the gene Hsp83, the single-copy fly gene encoding Hsp90. It is unknown whether observations from such laboratory experiments are relevant in the wild.ResultsWe here study naturally occurring mutations in Hsp83, and their effects on fitness and phenotypic buffering in flies derived from wild populations. We examined more than 4500 flies from 42 Drosophila populations distributed world-wide for insertions or deletions of mobile DNA in or near the Hsp83 gene. The insertions we observed occur at low population frequencies, and reduce Hsp83 gene expression. In competition experiments, mutant flies performed much more poorly than wild-type flies. Mutant flies were also significantly less fecund and shorter-lived than wild-type flies, as well as less well buffered against cryptic deleterious variation, as we show through inbreeding experiments. Specifically, in Hsp83 mutant flies female fecundity dropped to much lower levels after inbreeding than in wild-type flies. At even slightly elevated temperatures, inbred mutant Hsp83 populations went extinct, whereas inbred wild-type populations persisted.ConclusionsOur work shows that Hsp90, a regulator of the stress response and of signaling, helps buffer deleterious variation in fruit flies derived from wild population, and that its buffering role becomes even more important under heat stress.