Fine‐scale genetic structuring in a natural population of European wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus)

Abstract

The genetic structure of a free-living tagged population of European wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) was investigated for two consecutive years (1990 and 1991) using 10 polymorphic microsatellite loci. A specific social behaviour, the formation of stable breeding groups, influenced the genetic structure of the population. These breeding groups were shown to constitute genetically differentiated units with low levels of gene flow between them. The average relatedness among members of a social group was higher than within the population as a whole. As a result of female philopatry coupled with male-biased natal dispersal, the relatedness of females was higher than that of males, both within social groups and in the whole population. Furthermore, the average relatedness of females within groups was twice the relatedness of females between groups. This study reveals marked fine-scale, intrapopulation genetic structure, which is attributable to the social behaviour of the European wild rabbit.

Spatial genetic structure across a hybrid zone between European rabbit subspecies

“…This, along with a well-documented history, has allowed the development of multiple studies on the evolutionary history of this lagomorph from a wide range of molecular (Ferrand, 1989;Biju-Duval et al, 1991;Branco, Ferrand & Monnerot, 2000;Geraldes et al, 2008;Carneiro et al, 2012), temporal Monnerot et al, 1994) and geographical perspectives (Webb et al, 1995;Fuller, Wilson & Mather, 1997;Surridge et al, 1999b;Queney et al, 2000;Queney et al, 2001;Branco et al, 2002).…”

“…0 Op e n A c c e s s | r e c e i v e d : 2 7 A u g 2 0 1 4 , p u b l i s h e d : 2 7 A u g PrePrints population genetics studies on the rabbit in the Iberian Peninsula have either examined genetic variation between lineages, or the area where they come into contact Queney et al, 2001;Branco & Ferrand, 2003;Ferrand & Branco, 2007;Carneiro, Ferrand & Nachman, 2009;Carneiro et al, 2010), but rarely all together or in a comparative context. Furthermore, so far, studies relating the observed genetic structure to behavioral traits or habitat have only been carried out in regions where the rabbit is a non-native species (Fuller, Wilson & Mather, 1997;Surridge et al, 1999a;Surridge et al, 1999b). In this context, the Iberian Peninsula is unique, since it is the only region in the world where the two subspecies are native and cooccur.…”

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“…However, these barriers did not determine an increase in genetic differentiation explained solely by geographic distance. This is probably because, when considering the overall genetic structure and distribution of the rabbit, differences at a more local level have greater importance (Surridge et al, 1999a;Surridge et al, 1999b;Branco, Ferrand & Monnerot, 2000). This hypothesis is further supported by the results of our spatial autocorrelation analyses indicating significantly positive correlation up to a distance of about 100 km (Fig.…”

“…This, along with a well-documented history, has allowed the development of multiple studies on the evolutionary history of this lagomorph from a wide range of molecular PrePrints (Ferrand, 1989; Biju-Duval et al, 1991; Branco, Ferrand & Monnerot, 2000; Geraldes et al, 2008; Carneiro et al, 2012), temporal (Hardy et al, 1994 Monnerot et al, 1994) and geographical perspectives (Webb et al, 1995; Fuller, Wilson & Mather, 1997;Surridge et al, 1999b; Queney et al, 2000; Queney et al, 2001; Branco et al, 2002).…”

“…However, differences in the spatial genetic structure between the parental lineages, either in allopatry or interacting within the hybrid zone, are still largely unknown, because most PrePrints population genetics studies on the rabbit in the Iberian Peninsula have either examined genetic variation between lineages, or the area where they come into contact (Monnerot et al, 1994; Queney et al, 2001; Branco & Ferrand, 2003; Ferrand & Branco, 2007; Carneiro, Ferrand & Nachman, 2009; Carneiro et al, 2010), but rarely all together or in a comparative context. Furthermore, so far, studies relating the observed genetic structure to behavioral traits or habitat have only been carried out in regions where the rabbit is a non-native species (Fuller, Wilson & Mather, 1997;Surridge et al, 1999a;Surridge et al, 1999b). In this context, the Iberian Peninsula is unique, since it is the only region in the world where the two subspecies are native and cooccur.…”