mtDNA diversity in a rabbit population from Sicily (Italy)

Valvo, Mario Lo; Russo, Roberta; Mancuso, Francesco Paolo; Palla, Franco

doi:10.3906/zoo-1511-53

Cited by 5 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 46 publications

(64 reference statements)

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“…Similar trends in compensation for reductions in rabbit in the diet of Bonelli's eagles have been reported elsewhere (Ontiveros and Pleguezuelos 2000;Moleón et al 2009Moleón et al , 2012. Our results seem to be consistent with this pattern, which could suggest a decrease in the availability of wild rabbit in Sicily is occurring (Lo Valvo et al 2014, 2017. This is likely, given that in recent decades the wild rabbit has undergone a progressive decline in abundance in Italy (Lo Valvo (Villafuerte et al 1995;Moleón et al, 2007;Caro et al 2011;Resano-Mayor et al 2014).…”

Section: Diet Compositionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…In general, main management actions to recover and increase prey populations in the long term could include habitat restoration and implementation of sustainable hunting programmes (Rollan et al 2016). However, when local populations of Mediterranean raptors, such as the Sicilian population of Bonelli's eagle, are subjected to other factors which impact population persistence such as severe habitat degradation (Di Vittorio et al 2012), which is further compounded by severe and sharp reduction in prey species, especially wild rabbit (Lo Valvo et al 2014, 2017, it could be advisable to provide supplementary feeding (Rollan et al 2016) in order to increase productivity in occupied territories until habitats are restored and prey population stability has returned. For example, the ongoing LIFE ConRaSi project (Conservation of Raptors in Sicily) funded by the European Union, supplemented food availability via the construction of several strategically located rabbit farms across eagles' territories.…”

Section: Management Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, wild rabbits, a keystone species in Mediterranean landscapes (Villafuerte et al 1995), have substantially declined in several parts of its current range in Europe. Consequently, it has been classified as a near-threatened species on the Red List of Italian Vertebrates (Rondinini et al 2013; http://www.iucn.it/) even though it is also considered an agricultural pest species in many areas (Lo Valvo et al 2017). This could have major impact on its main predators, including the scarce Bonelli's eagle (López-López et al, 2012).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Long-term changes in the breeding period diet of Bonelli

Vittorio

Valvo

Trapani³

et al. 2019

Wildl. Res.

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Context Dietary analyses are essential to achieve a better understanding of animal ecology. In the case of endangered species, assessing dietary requirements is crucial to improve their management and conservation. The Bonelli’s eagle (Aquila fasciata) has experienced a severe decline throughout its breeding range in Europe and, in Italy, fewer than 50 pairs remain, and only in Sicily. This species is subject to major threats, including changes in landscape composition and, consequently, prey availability, which is further aggravated by the occurrence of viral diseases in the case of rabbits. Aims To provide current data on the diet of the Bonelli’s eagle in Sicily during the breeding period and to examine dietary shifts with regard to previous studies conducted in the same study area. To discuss possible implications for conservation of the Italian population of this endangered species. Methods We used a combination of three methods, including pellet analysis, collection of prey remains, and imagery from camera-traps installed at nests, to examine the diet of 12 breeding pairs of Bonelli’s eagle from 2011 to 2017. We compared this information with data collected between 1993 and 1998 in the same study area. Key results In number, birds were the most frequently predated items (61.6%), followed by mammals (36.88%) and reptiles (1.52%). However, in terms of biomass, mammals were the main prey (65.71%), followed by birds (34.12%) and reptiles (0.17%). There was a decrease over the course of the current decade in the consumption of European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), which was compensated for with an increase in both dietary diversity and breadth in bird consumption, a trend not observed in the earlier study in the same region. Conclusions Here, we provide an updated assessment of diet composition of Bonelli’s eagle during the breeding period. Interestingly, we found significant differences within the study period (2011–2017) in terms of frequency of occurrence, percentage of biomass, dietary diversity and dietary breadth in a species at risk. Furthermore, we found significant differences between the two study periods in both frequency and percentage of biomass, with significant changes in the consumption of lagomorphs and birds. Implications Our results indicated that shifts in the diet are linked to changes in prey abundance, which may be contributing to population declines in the Bonelli’s eagle population in Sicily. Overall, measures aimed at increasing main dietary prey should be promoted to favour occupation of new territories and enhance vital demographic parameters (i.e. breeding success and survival rate) of Bonelli’s eagle across the species range. This would be particularly important for small isolated populations such as the Sicilian one.

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Section: Diet Compositionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Management Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Long-term changes in the breeding period diet of Bonelli

Vittorio

Valvo

Trapani³

et al. 2019

Wildl. Res.

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“…Over the last three decades, mtDNA has been widely used in rabbit diversity studies (Ennafaa et al, 1987;Long et al, 2003;Mougel et al, 2003;Nguyen et al, 2018;Owuor et al, 2019). These genetic studies have focused on the European geographical expansion reported by Christensen and Peng (2012), and Valvo et al (2017) mentioned that mtDNA is used to identify the primary origins for domestic rabbits.…”

Section: W O R L D R a B B I T S C I E N C Ementioning

confidence: 99%

Status and origin of Egyptian local rabbits in comparison with Spanish common rabbits using mitochondrial DNA sequence analysis

et al. 2020

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Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and cytochrome b (cyt b) gene sequences were used to determine the status of genetic diversity and phylogeny for 132 individuals from local rabbit breeds in Egypt and Spain. The Egyptian local rabbit breeds were Egyptian Red Baladi (ERB), Egyptian Black Baladi (EBB) and Egyptian Gabali Sinai (EGS). However, the Spanish local rabbit breed was Spanish common rabbit (SCR). Previous breeds were compared with European Wild Rabbit taken from Albacete, Spain (EWR). A total of 353 mutations, 290 polymorphic sites, 14 haplotypes, 0.06126 haplotype diversity and -1.900 (P<0.05) for Tajima’s D were defined in this study. Haplotype A mostly occurred in 83.3% of Egyptian rabbits and 11.7% of EWR, while haplotype B occurred in 63.8% of Spanish rabbits and 36.2% of the EGS breed. A total of 47 domestic and wild Oryctolagus cuniculus published sequences were used to investigate the origin and relation among the rabbit breeds tested in this study. The most common haplotype (A) was combined with 44.7% of published sequences. However, haplotype B was combined with 8.5%. Haplotypes of Egyptian, SCR and EWR were scattered in cluster 1, while we found only one EGS haplotype with two haplotypes of EWR in cluster 2. Our results assumed that genetic diversity for ERB, EBB and SCR was very low. Egyptian breeds and SCR were introduced from European rabbits. We found that ERB and EBB belong to one breed.

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“…"Isola delle Femmine" is a small island in the Mediterranean basin, established as a protected area in 1997 for the conservation of ora and vegetation. After the Second World War, as well as a small herd of sheep, several rabbits belonging to the subspecies O. c. cuniculus (Lo Valvo et al 2014, 2017 have been voluntarily introduced on this island by humans for hunting purposes. After their introduction, the density of rabbits on the island was kept low because of hunting, but the establishment of the protected area resulted in a hunting ban, beyond the end of competition for access to trophic resources caused by the eradication of domestic livestock.…”

Section: ; Murphy Et Al 2010)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Non-cruelty eradication of European wild rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus from a small Mediterranean island (Isola delle Femmine, Italy)

Valvo¹,

Lillo²,

Dio

2022

Preprint

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European wild rabbit is, among mammals, one of the most widespread species almost worldwide, introduced on over 800 islands. In microinsular habitats, the introduction of alien species represents a major threat for the biodiversity, and the wild rabbit is included in the IUCN published list of the 100 worst invasive species. In 2008, an eradication plan was launched on “Isola delle Femmine”, a small and uninhabited island of about 14,5 hectares, located in the Mediterranean basin and established as nature reserve in 1997 to protect its flora and vegetation. The plan was realised without the use of poison and avoiding the killing of rabbits, which were live-trapped and moved out for successive conservation projects in Sicily. The Wild Rabbit eradication plan began in December 2007 and ended in 2016, with the complete eradication of the species achieved in 2012. During the 5 years in which trapping took place on the island, a total of 799 rabbits were trapped and translocated. A significant positive correlation (r = 0.986; p = 0.014) was observed between the number of catches made during the year and the estimated rabbit density in July (considered the highest of the year). The method used showed considerable efficacy for the management of rabbit populations in microinsular environments, highlighting the possibility of intervention with these methods when control by the use of poison or direct culling is impractical or inadvisable.

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mtDNA diversity in a rabbit population from Sicily (Italy)

Cited by 5 publications

References 46 publications

Long-term changes in the breeding period diet of Bonelli

Long-term changes in the breeding period diet of Bonelli

Status and origin of Egyptian local rabbits in comparison with Spanish common rabbits using mitochondrial DNA sequence analysis

Non-cruelty eradication of European wild rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus from a small Mediterranean island (Isola delle Femmine, Italy)

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