Abstract
Simple SummaryHedgehogs are regularly brought to wildlife shelters. Depending on the area from where animals are accepted, translocation can occur between different regions or populations. In this study, the genetic diversity of wild hedgehog populations was compared with “shelter populations” within central Europe focusing on the western contact zone between both European hedgehog species. Some shelters were hosting both species at the same time, in one this could be shown genetically. Generally, no difference in genetic diversity between shelter individuals and wild populations was found. Two shelters from Innsbruck hosted individuals that probably belong to two subpopulations. This indicates that shelter management-related translocations could facilitate gene flow across a dispersal barrier.Hedgehogs are among the most abundant species to be found within wildlife shelters and after successful rehabilitation they are frequently translocated. The effects and potential impact of these translocations on gene flow within wild populations are largely unknown. In this study, different wild hedgehog populations were compared with artificially created “shelter populations”, with regard to their genetic diversity, in order to establish basic data for future inferences on the genetic impact of hedgehog translocations. Observed populations are located within central Europe, including the species Erinaceus europaeus and E. roumanicus. Shelters were mainly hosting one species; in one case, both species were present syntopically. Apart from one exception, the results did not show a higher genetic diversity within shelter populations, indicating that individuals did not originate from a wider geographical area than individuals grouped into one of the wild populations. Two shelters from Innsbruck hosted individuals that belonged to two potential clusters, as indicated in a distance analysis. When such a structure stems from the effects of landscape elements like large rivers, the shelter management-related translocations might lead to homogenization across the dispersal barrier.
Highlights
The two European hedgehog species Erinaceus europaeus (Linne, 1758) and E. roumanicus (Barrett-Hamilton, 1900) are assessed as ‘least concern’ by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List of Threatened Species [1,2]
Because hedgehogs are mainly found in close proximity to human settlements, rural as well as urban, occupying diverse man-made habitats [1,2,11], the population structure might be influenced by human infrastructure and anthropogenic barriers fragmenting the landscape
Hedgehogs are naturally subjected to dispersal impediments that can result in a genetic structure [15,16]
Summary
The two European hedgehog species Erinaceus europaeus (Linne, 1758) and E. roumanicus (Barrett-Hamilton, 1900) are assessed as ‘least concern’ by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List of Threatened Species [1,2]. Limited migration possibilities might reduce and disturb gene flow [4,12,13,14]. This can manifest itself in an influence on the isolation-by-distance pattern on small geographical scales, like shown in the United Kingdom (UK) [7]. The effects of anthropogenic as well as geographical barriers (e.g., rivers, mountain ranges) might be reinforced by the per se limited dispersal capacities of this species [7,9,14]
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