&lt;b&gt;Dna barcoding, population genetics, and phylogenetics of the illegally hunted Philippine Duck &lt;I&gt;Anas luzonica&lt;/I&gt; (Aves: Anseriformes: Anatidae)&lt;/b&gt;

Ardea Mingoa Licuanan,Mariano Roymartin Duya,Perry Sim Ong,Ian Kendrich Carandang Fontanilla

doi:10.11609/jott.2253.9.5.10141-10150

<b>Dna barcoding, population genetics, and phylogenetics of the illegally hunted Philippine Duck <I>Anas luzonica</I> (Aves: Anseriformes: Anatidae)</b>

Ardea Mingoa Licuanan, Mariano Roymartin Duya + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.2253.9.5.10141-10150

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Abstract

DNA barcoding is extensively used as a species identification and delineation tool. The aim of this study was to generate a barcode profile for mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) in the Philippine Duck Anas luzonica, a dabbling duck species endemic to the Philippines that is classified as ‘Vulnerable’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (BirdLife International 2016). COI barcodes were successfully obtained using muscle tissue samples from 46 A. luzonica individuals confiscated from illegal hunters in Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija. Analysis of TrN+Γ+I distances among the Anas luzonica COI sequences and those of 25 other Anas species revealed that COI barcodes cannot generally delineate hybridizing species. While Anas luzonica was differentiated from other species it is known to hybridize with and formed a monophyletic group in the neighbor-joining tree generated, sampling from areas of sympatry is needed since individuals were obtained from only one sampling site. The population structure of the Anas luzonica population was also examined using mitochondrial DNA control region and COI sequences. The population had high haplotype diversity and low nucleotide diversity, an indication that a bottleneck event had occurred, which is likely due to extreme hunting pressures and habitat destruction. The population under study exhibited high genetic diversity. Given that the samples for this study came from a single locality, sampling from other localities is required to determine whether other populations are facing the risk of reduced fitness (inbreeding depression).

Highlights

Bird taxonomy during the greater part of the 20th century was the subject of much debate
Several morphology-based phylogenetic studies investigated the evolutionary relationships of taxa within class Aves, findings were constantly challenged (Livezey & Zusi 2007)
Given the lack of certainty regarding the relationship of Anas luzonica with other dabbling ducks, the study aimed to generate a phylogenetic tree for Anas spp. based on the c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene

Summary

Introduction

Bird taxonomy during the greater part of the 20th century was the subject of much debate. Using muscle tissue samples obtained from illegally hunted and confiscated Philippine Ducks from Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija, the present study aimed to generate a COI barcode profile for Anas luzonica. The study aimed to examine the population genetics of Philippine Ducks using mitochondrial DNA control region and COI sequences.

Results

Conclusion