Development and characterisation of microsatellite loci for Murina gracilis (Vespertilionidae) and cross-species amplification in two other congeneric species

Abstract

Tube-nosed bats (Murina) are restricted to the forests of Asia, Papua New Guinea and northeast Australia, where they are considered highly vulnerable to habitat loss and fragmentation. Several members of the genus have been recently discovered and remain poorly known, including the putative sister species Murina gracilis and M. recondita, both of which are endemic to Taiwan. We developed novel microsatellite markers for M. gracilis and screened these in both taxa and a third Taiwanese endemic M. puta. The final number of useable markers that did not deviate from Hardy–Weinberg or linkage equilibrium was 18 for M. gracilis and M. recondita, including one that was X-linked, and nine for M. puta. We are using these markers to characterise population genetic structure and gene flow within all three taxa to inform conservation management.