Testing of microsatellite markers for individual identification of fallow deer

Abstract

The fallow deer (Dama dama) of Hungary has excellent value to our country due to its game meat and antler trophies. As an attempt to aid law enforcement against illegal activities, such as poaching, illegal trading, and in other cases like traffic accidents, we aimed to develop a genetic marker set suitable for individual identification. During our research, 28 microsatellite markers on 15 fallow deer samples from two different populations were tested. Four microsatellites were found to be polymorphic, each with two or three alleles. Based on our current results, Hungarian fallow deer populations show low genetic diversity. This is in agreement with previous studies conducted on the species and is probably a direct result of the species’ past extinction from the most of Europe during the Pleistocene and later its human-mediated reintroduction to most of its current range. The low number of polymorphic markers presents the need to include additional markers.fallow deer