Demographic histories and genetic diversity across pinnipeds are shaped by human exploitation, ecology and life-history

Stoffel, Martin; Humble, Emily; Paijmans, Anneke J.; Acevedo‐Whitehouse, Karina; Chilvers, B. Louise; Dickerson, Bobette; Galimberti, Filippo; Gemmell, Neil J.; Goldsworthy, Simon; Nichols, Hazel J.; Krüger, Oliver; Negro, Sandra; Osborne, Amy J.; Pastor, T.; Robertson, Bruce C.; Sanvito, Simona; Schultz, Jennifer K.; Shafer, Aaron B. A.; Wolf, Jochen B. W.; Hoffman, Joseph I.

doi:10.1038/s41467-018-06695-z

Cited by 59 publications

(85 citation statements)

References 76 publications

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“…Although in principle, similar patterns of genetic diversity might be produced by more ancient bottlenecks, these are unlikely to be detected reliably using microsatellite data when subsequent recovery occurred 57 . This is in keeping with a previous study in which a simple model incorporating a recent bottleneck was better supported than a more complex model that also included a small population size during the last glacial maximum followed by expansion 20 .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…, standardised across species as the average number of alleles per ten individuals, was high relative to other otariids, with the Antarctic fur seal being ranked fourth highest out of 13 species ( Supplementary Fig. S5) for which comparable microsatellite data were available 20 . In relative terms, genetic diversity did not vary a great deal across the geographical distribution of the Antarctic fur seal (Fig.…”

Section: Genetic Diversity Allelic Richness (A R )mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In particular, recent severe demographic declines or bottlenecks 15,16 can be inferred by comparing the observed genetic diversity of a contemporary sample with the diversity expected under alternative historical scenarios simulated based on the coalescent [17][18][19] . Applied in a comparative context, this approach has shown that the intensity of recent bottlenecks can be influenced by species-specific traits such as breeding ecology and mating system variation 20 . However, our understanding of within-species variation in demographic histories remains limited because most studies of individual species are conducted with suboptimal sample sizes of both individuals and loci, and test for the presence or absence of bottlenecks rather than quantifying their intensity 21 .…”

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confidence: 99%

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The genetic legacy of extreme exploitation in a polar vertebrate

Paijmans

Stoffel

Bester

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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Understanding the effects of human exploitation on the genetic composition of wild populations is important for predicting species persistence and adaptive potential. We therefore investigated the genetic legacy of large-scale commercial harvesting by reconstructing, on a global scale, the recent demographic history of the Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella), a species that was hunted to the brink of extinction by 18 th and 19 th century sealers. Molecular genetic data from over 2,000 individuals sampled from all eight major breeding locations across the species' circumpolar geographic distribution, show that at least four relict populations around Antarctica survived commercial hunting. coalescent simulations suggest that all of these populations experienced severe bottlenecks down to effective population sizes of around 150-200. Nevertheless, comparably high levels of neutral genetic variability were retained as these declines are unlikely to have been strong enough to deplete allelic richness by more than around 15%. These findings suggest that even dramatic short-term declines need not necessarily result in major losses of diversity, and explain the apparent contradiction between the high genetic diversity of this species and its extreme exploitation history.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Genetic Diversity Allelic Richness (A R )mentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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The genetic legacy of extreme exploitation in a polar vertebrate

Paijmans

Stoffel

Bester

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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“…USA (1972), New Zealand (1978), UK (1981)). Following strict protection, many marine species (52%) are now recovering (7,9), including most pinnipeds (e.g. seals, sea lions), though others (10%) are still declining (9).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Disconnects in global discourses—the unintended consequences of marine mammal protection on small-scale fishers

Davis

Alfaro‐Shigueto

Arlidge

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Globally, the populations of many marine mammals remain of critical concern after centuries of exploitation and hunting. However, some marine mammal populations (e.g. pinnipeds) have largely recovered from exploitation, and interactions between these species and fisheries-particularly small-scale fisheries-is once again of concern globally. The large scope and widespread scale of interactions highlights the local disconnect between two global policies: marine mammal conservation and small-scale fisheries protection. In this research, we explore these conflicting global policies by assessing the perceptions of coastal smallscale fishers in Peru and Chile regarding their interactions with pinnipeds, including the South American sea lion (Otaria flavescens) and South American fur seal (Arctocephalus australis). We surveyed 301 gill net fishers and assess perceptions using a best-worst scaling methodology. We find that fishers are chiefly concerned with the increase in pinniped populations, perceive that their interactions with pinnipeds have significantly increased over the past 80 years, and report pinniped-driven catch and income losses ≥ 26 per cent. Surprisingly, fishers do not believe that compensation schemes will resolve this issueinstead they overwhelmingly call for pinniped population culls. The reported number of pinnipeds illegally killed by fishers suggests the potential for large negative impacts on these protected species, and a loss of legitimacy in marine regulation. Collectively, our results portray a sense of marginalisation from fishers'-that global policy treats them as less "important" than marine mammals. Our results highlight the increasing disconnect in global policy, which on one hand seeks to protect threatened marine mammal populations, and on the other seeks to promote the welfare of small-scale fishers.

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“…In the past, these traits made them easy targets for hunting, but today they facilitate long-term studies of known individuals. This predictability, coupled with interest in their wide range of breeding behaviors (Cassini, 2000;Fitzpatrick, Almbro, Gonzalez-Voyer, Kolm, & Simmons, 2012;Krüger, Wolf, Jonker, Hoffman, & Trillmich, 2014), demographic responses to climate change (Forcada & Hoffman, 2014), and interactions with humans (Kovacs et al, 2012), has led to the development of parallel genetic studies of many related species (Stoffel et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heterozygosity at neutral and immune loci is not associated with neonatal mortality due to microbial infection in Antarctic fur seals

Litzke

Ottensmann

Forcada

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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Numerous studies have reported correlations between the heterozygosity of genetic markers and fitness. These heterozygosity–fitness correlations (HFCs) play a central role in evolutionary and conservation biology, yet their mechanistic basis remains open to debate. For example, fitness associations have been widely reported at both neutral and functional loci, yet few studies have directly compared the two, making it difficult to gauge the relative contributions of genome‐wide inbreeding and specific functional genes to fitness. Here, we compared the effects of neutral and immune gene heterozygosity on death from bacterial infection in Antarctic fur seal ( Arctocephalus gazella ) pups. We specifically developed a panel of 13 microsatellites from expressed immune genes and genotyped these together with 48 neutral loci in 234 individuals, comprising 39 pups that were classified at necropsy as having most likely died of bacterial infection together with a five times larger matched sample of healthy surviving pups. Identity disequilibrium quantified from the neutral markers was positive and significant, indicative of variance in inbreeding within the study population. However, multilocus heterozygosity did not differ significantly between healthy and infected pups at either class of marker, and little evidence was found for fitness associations at individual loci. These results support a previous study of Antarctic fur seals that found no effects of heterozygosity at nine neutral microsatellites on neonatal survival and thereby help to refine our understanding of how HFCs vary across the life cycle. Given that nonsignificant HFCs are underreported in the literature, we also hope that our study will contribute toward a more balanced understanding of the wider importance of this phenomenon.

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Demographic histories and genetic diversity across pinnipeds are shaped by human exploitation, ecology and life-history

Cited by 59 publications

References 76 publications

The genetic legacy of extreme exploitation in a polar vertebrate

The genetic legacy of extreme exploitation in a polar vertebrate

Disconnects in global discourses—the unintended consequences of marine mammal protection on small-scale fishers

Heterozygosity at neutral and immune loci is not associated with neonatal mortality due to microbial infection in Antarctic fur seals

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