Abstract
Captive breeding programs are crucial to ensure the survival of endangered species and ultimately to reintroduce individuals into the wild. However, captive-bred populations can also deteriorate due to inbreeding depression and reduction of genetic variability. We genotyped a captive population of 82 individuals of the endangered Hume’s pheasant (Syrmaticus humiae, Hume 1881) at the Doi Tung Wildlife Breeding Center to assess the genetic consequences associated with captive breeding. Analysis of microsatellite loci and mitochondrial D-loop sequences reveal significantly reduced genetic differentiation and a shallow population structure. Despite the low genetic variability, no bottleneck was observed but 12 microsatellite loci were informative in reflecting probable inbreeding. These findings provide a valuable source of knowledge to maximize genetic variability and enhance the success of future conservation plans for captive and wild populations of Hume’s pheasant.
Highlights
The most important concerns in the conservation biology of wildlife are a decrease in genetic variability, an increased likelihood of extinction due to changes in land use, over-exploitation of living resources, and urbanization [1,2]
Ninety-one alleles were observed among all loci, with mean number of alleles per locus of 7.500 ± 0.802 (Tables 1 and S5)
Null alleles were observed at all microsatellite loci, and all markers listed were treated
Summary
The most important concerns in the conservation biology of wildlife are a decrease in genetic variability, an increased likelihood of extinction due to changes in land use, over-exploitation of living resources, and urbanization [1,2]. Genetic variability of the Hume’s pheasant form of a grant awarded to JT, WS, SFA, WC, KP, WS, PD, and KS (0402.6/1840); the Center for Advanced Studies in Tropical Natural Resources, National Research University-Kasetsart University (CASTNAR, NRU-KU, Thailand) in the form of a grant awarded to PD and KS; the Center of Excellence on Agricultural Biotechnology, Science and Technology Postgraduate Education and Research Development Office, Office of Higher Education Commission, Ministry of Education (AGBIO/PERDO-CHE) in the form of a grant awarded to KS; the Thailand Science Research and Innovation through the Kasetsart University Reinventing University Program 2021 awarded to NA and KS; the Thailand Research Fund (TRF) in the form of a grant awarded to KS (RSA6180075); and International SciKU Branding (ISB), Faculty of Science, Kasetsart University in the form of funds awarded to KS. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
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