Landscape genetics of mountain lions (Puma concolor) in southern Brazil

Abstract

a b s t r a c tIt is suggested that mountain lions have suffered a bottleneck and lost their genetic diversity in an area in southern Brazil. In this study, we correlated landscape connectivity and patterns of gene flow to identify landscape permeability and possible sources of migrants for the population of mountain lions in southern Brazil, using circuit theory. Population structure was analyzed with Bayesian methods, and density and parentage relationships were also estimated, to evaluate the population genetic profile. We did not find genetic structure between samples, and landscape analysis indicated that all individuals were connected by areas that are permeable to mountain lion movements. The estimated population density was low, 0.09 and 0.32 mountain lions/100 km 2 (N e /N = 0.11 and N e /N = 0.4, respectively). Parentage results indicated that individuals killed in the same spot were not related, suggesting that mountain lions are still able to disperse through the landscape. Evidence indicates that severe habitat loss and consequent illegal hunting were responsible for a bottleneck and consequent loss of genetic variability, we demonstrated that the landscape still allows mountain lions to move, and that protected areas in southern Brazil may be acting as a source of migrants. This information indicates that conservation actions to reduce illegal hunting and to monitor protected areas are important to understand the impact of hunted areas on source areas.

Natural recolonization and suburban presence of pumas (Puma concolor) in Brazil

“…Finally, it should be added that a recent study of Tableland pumas found that this population has gone through a bottleneck (Castilho et al, 2011), corroborating the evidence of range reduction and posterior expansion as discussed. The recolonization of the puma was partially a product of the conservation policy that provided full protection status to the Atlantic forest.…”

“…Pumas shot while attacking livestock, consisted of males, females, adult, subadults, and young. Latter, a larger sample of 37 skin samples from wild pumas poached after depredation was obtained by Castilho et al (2011) on livestock from the studies in SC. Sheep flocks were the most abundant vulnerable livestock, and were prior to puma recolonization, raised free-ranging, with only two out of twelve surveyed ranches having them corraled at night .…”

Genetic structure and conservation of Mountain Lions in the South-Brazilian Atlantic Rain Forest

“…Each micro-satellite locus was individually amplified in PCR reactions, according to Castilho et al , (2011). Allele sizes were defined by separating the amplification products on 6% polyacrylamide gels together with a 25 bp marker ladder.…”

Trophic relationships of sympatric small carnivores in fragmented landscapes of southern Brazil: niche overlap and potential for competition

“…The giant river otter Pteuronura brasiliensis (Gmelin, 1788) disappeared from this region in the 1950s, as has the bush dog Speothos venaticus (Lund, 1842), which probably occurred in southern Brazil and northeastern Argentina in the past (Fontana et al 2003). Mountain lions Puma concolor ( Linnaeus, 1771) persist in some parts of the region, although probably in very low abundance (Mazzolli 1993, Castilho et al 2010. Thus, this assemblage of carnivores probably lives in a state of "mesopredator release" (Crooks and Soulé 1999), most likely without the effect of predators regulating their populations.…”