Microsatellite Loci Analysis Reveals Post-bottleneck Recovery of Genetic Diversity in the Tibetan Antelope

Abstract

The Tibetan antelope (chiru, Pantholops hodgsoni) is one of the most endangered mammals native to the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The population size has rapidly declined over the last century due to illegal hunting and habitat damage. In the past 10 years, the population has reportedly been expanding due to conservation efforts. Several lines of evidence suggest that the Tibetan antelope has undergone a demographic bottleneck. However, the consequences of the bottleneck on genetic diversity and the post-bottleneck genetic recovery remain unknown. In this study, we investigate the genetic variation of 15 microsatellite loci from two Tibetan antelope populations sampled in 2003 (Pop2003) and 2013 (Pop2013). A higher level of genetic diversity (NA, 13.286; He, 0.840; PIC, 0.813; I, 2.114) was detected in Pop2013, compared to Pop2003 (NA, 12.929; He, 0.818; PIC, 0.789; I, 2.033). We observe that despite passing through the bottleneck, the Tibetan antelope retains high levels of genetic diversity. Furthermore, our results show significant or near significant increases in genetic diversity (He, PIC and I) in Pop2013 compared with Pop2003, which suggests that protection efforts did not arrive too late for the Tibetan antelope.

Genetic Resilience of a Once Endangered Species, Tibetan Antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii)

“…()* of STR loci was 0.7767 and 0.8446 for the within and among-deme studies respectively. Our results are consistent with previous studies (Du et al, 2016;F. Zhang, Jiang, Xu, Zeng, & Li, 2013).…”

“…Previous studies suggested that Tibetan antelope populations maintained high genetic variation with no signs of population structure (Ahmad et al, 2016;Du et al, 2016;H. Zhou, Li, Zhang, Yang, & Liu, 2007), although the genetic effects of the population crash on Tibetan antelope remain unclear.…”

Population genetics reveals high connectivity of giant panda populations across human disturbance features in key nature reserve

“…Estimating and evaluating genetic variation is critical for the effective evaluation and management of endangered populations and species (Caniglia, Fabbri, Galaverni, Milanesi, & Randi, ; Du et al, ; Wang et al, ). Populations with higher genetic diversity are often inferred to have greater capacity to adapt to environmental change (Frankham, ).…”

Genetic structure in the marbled rockfish(Sebastiscus marmoratus)across most of the distribution in the northwestern Pacific

“…However, there are no reports on the genetic structure of S. marmoratus populations that cover most of the habitat, from Japan to China. Microsatellite markers used in the exploration of population genetic structure usually exhibit co‐dominant inheritance and high diversity, with relatively modest analysis expense (Chong & Roe, ; Du et al, ; Kitson‐Walters et al, ). This study aimed to draw a comprehensive picture of the patterns of genetic diversity and structure along the distribution area in the coastal waters of the northwestern Pacific, across a large latitudinal range, using microsatellite markers.…”