Genetic signatures of population bottlenecks, relatedness, and inbreeding highlight recent and novel conservation concerns in the Egyptian vulture

PeerJ

article

Guillermo Blanco¹  Francisco Morinha¹ 

[1] Department of Evolutionary Ecology, National Museum of Natural Sciences ,(MNCN), Spanish National Research Council

关键词: Genetic diversity;    Bottlenecks;    Inbreeding;    Feather malformations;    Neophron percnopterus;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.11139

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

The assessment of temporal variation in genetic features can be particularly informative on the factors behind demography and viability of wildlife populations and species. We used molecular methods to evaluate neutral genetic variation, relatedness, bottlenecks, and inbreeding in a declining population of Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus) in central Spain. The results show that the genetic diversity remained relatively stable over a period of twelve years despite the decline in census and effective population sizes in the last decades. A relatively high proportion of nestlings from different and distant territories showed high relatedness in each study year. We also found support for an increasing impact of severe recent (contemporary) rather than distant (historical) past demographic bottlenecks, and the first evidence of inbred mating between full siblings coinciding with lethal malformations in offspring. The inbred nestling with feather malformations was positive to beak and feather disease virus recorded for the first time in this species. These results alert on recent and novel threats potentially affecting health and reducing the adaptive potential of individuals in this threatened species.

【 授权许可】

CC BY