Fine-Scale Genetic Structure and Social Organization in Female White-Tailed Deer

Comer, Christopher E.; Kilgo, John C.; D'Angelo, Gino J.; Glenn, Travis C.; Miller, Karl V.

doi:10.2193/0022-541x(2005)069<0332:fgsaso>2.0.co;2

Cited by 63 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 45 publications

(66 reference statements)

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“…Furthermore low female dispersal should not be assumed for all areas. High female dispersal rates have been reported in areas with heavy annual harvests and a young female age structure (Comer et al 2005), as well as in fragmented agricultural landscapes (Nixon et al 1991).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Forest regeneration sites located in remote areas where access to the hunting public is difficult or problematic also may benefit from an application of localized management prior to timber harvesting to ensure successful regeneration (Campbell et al 2004). However, effectiveness of any behavior-based management technique may be limited by the behavioral plasticity of white-tailed deer (Miller 1997, Comer et al 2005. Campbell et al (2004) assessed the feasibility of implementing localized management on a hunted, nonmigratory, and high-density deer herd in the central Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia, USA, and reported that the a priori assumptions of localized management were met and that a test of localized management on the study site would be possible.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Test of Localized Management for Reducing Deer Browsing in Forest Regeneration Areas

Miller¹,

Campbell

Laseter³

et al. 2010

J Wildl Manag

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White‐tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) browsing in forest regeneration sites can affect current and future stand structure and species composition. Removal of deer social units (localized management) has been proposed as a strategy to alleviate deer overbrowsing in forest systems. We conducted an experimental localized removal in a high‐density deer population in the central Appalachians of West Virginia, USA, during winter 2002. We removed 51 deer within a 1.1‐km2 area that encompassed 2 forest regeneration sites (14 ha). During the summer following removal, we detected decreases in distance from the removal area in 8 of 30 (26.7%) adult females having pretreatment mean telemetry locations <2.5 km from the center of the removal area. We measured browsing rates during the summers of 2001–2004 from forest regeneration sites to examine efficacy of localized management. Browsing rates declined annually in both removal and control areas, due in part to increased timber harvesting on the larger study site, suggesting that increasing forage availability may be more effective at reducing impacts on forest regeneration than localized reductions in deer populations. Three years after the initial removal, we removed an additional 31 deer from the original 1.1‐km2 removal area. Home range shifts of adjacent deer coupled with the large number of animals collected in the second removal suggests that localized management only produces temporary voids within high‐density deer herds. Localized management may not effectively reduce negative impacts of deer in areas of high deer density.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Test of Localized Management for Reducing Deer Browsing in Forest Regeneration Areas

Miller¹,

Campbell

Laseter³

et al. 2010

J Wildl Manag

Self Cite

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show abstract

“…Hunting was either done by stalking or by using dogs to drive deer to stationary hunters, and we assumed that kill locations were situated within the normal home range of the animals. Using kill locations from drive hunts did not bias the conclusions in a study of fine-scale genetic structure of white-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus (Comer et al 2005).…”

Section: Study Area and Sample Collectionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Inclusion of juveniles potentially biases results towards greater correlation between spatial and genetic distances (Coltman et al 2003;Comer et al 2005). Due to sample size limitations in our data set, we mainly had to perform analyses that included the juveniles, although some analyses were performed on adults alone (see "Results").…”

Section: Spatial Autocorrelation Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Fine-scale genetic structure of red deer (Cervus elaphus) in a French temperate forest

2007

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Despite the classic population genetic view of a population as a network of sub-populations consisting of randomly mating individuals, the mating system and dispersal patterns of social animals affect the distribution of genetic variation on a local scale. The spatially open, forestdwelling red deer (Cervus elaphus) population at the Petite Pierre National Reserve in north-eastern France is culled annually, with the management aim of maximising the number of adult males in the population, and is a typical example of an exploited red deer population from continental Europe. Through a change in management policy, the number of adult males in the population has increased over time, leading to a reduction in variance of male reproductive success (Bonenfant et al., Ecography 25:446-458, 2002). In this study, we investigate the fine-scale genetic structure of the population using 14 microsatellite loci and attempt to find evidence for a change in this genetic structure over time. DNA was extracted from bone powder obtained by drilling into antlers and mandibular condyles. DNA was successfully extracted from up to 30-year-old samples, but it was necessary to genotype samples in duplicate to obtain reliable genetic profiles. Our results point towards a pattern of fine-scale spatial structure amongst female red deer in the study area, but not amongst males, as would be expected for a typical mammalian system with male-biased dispersal and female philopatry. In addition, our results hint at a decrease in spatial genetic structure amongst females over time, which might be related to a change in management policy, but small sample size limited the robustness of this conclusion.

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“…The validation study of Anderson et al (2002) included markers BM848, BM6506, and BM4208, and while H O was <H E for all three, the authors conclude that "little evidence exists of null alleles at these loci", with a recommendation for use in studies of gene flow and parentage (Anderson et al, 2002). Moreover, markers BM4208 and BM6505 continue to be employed in studies of kinship and relatedness (Grear et al, 2010), despite demonstrated HWE deviations (Anderson et al, 2002;Comer et al, 2005) and inconsistent genotypes (DeYoung et al, 2003a) in deer populations across the US. To prevent data bias and biological misinterpretations, markers need to be assessed thoroughly with each novel application.…”

Section: Genotyping Errorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microsatellites behaving badly: empirical evaluation of genotyping errors and subsequent impacts on population studies

et al. 2011

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ABSTRACT. Microsatellites are useful tools for ecological studies because they can be used to discern population structure, dispersal patterns and genetic relationships among individuals. However, they can also yield inaccurate genotypes that, in turn, bias results, promote biological misinterpretations, and create repercussions for population management and conservation programs. We used empirical data from a large-scale microsatellite DNA study of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) to identify sources of genotyping error, evaluate corrective measures, and provide recommendations to prevent bias in population studies. We detected unreported mutations that led to erroneous genotypes in five of 13 previously evaluated microsatellites. Of the five problematic markers, two contained mutations that resulted in null alleles, and three contained mutations that resulted in imperfect repeats. These five microsatellites had error rates that were four times greater on average than those observed in the remaining eight. 2535©FUNPEC-RP www.funpecrp.com.br Genetics and Molecular Research 10 (4): 2534-2553 (2011) Genotyping errors in population studiesMethodological corrections, such as primer redesign, reduced errors up to 5-fold in two problematic loci, although analytical corrections (computational adjustment for errors) were unable to fully prevent bias and, consequently, measures of genetic differentiation and kinship were negatively impacted. Our results demonstrate the importance of error evaluation during all stages of population studies, and emphasize the need to standardize procedures for microsatellite analyses. This study facilitates the application of microsatellite technology in population studies by examining common sources of genotyping error, identifying unreported problems with microsatellites, and offering solutions to prevent error and bias in population studies.

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Fine-Scale Genetic Structure and Social Organization in Female White-Tailed Deer

Cited by 63 publications

References 45 publications

Test of Localized Management for Reducing Deer Browsing in Forest Regeneration Areas

Test of Localized Management for Reducing Deer Browsing in Forest Regeneration Areas

Fine-scale genetic structure of red deer (Cervus elaphus) in a French temperate forest

Microsatellites behaving badly: empirical evaluation of genotyping errors and subsequent impacts on population studies

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