Urbanization impacts apex predator gene flow but not genetic diversity across an urban-rural divide.

Autor: Trumbo DR; Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA., Salerno PE; Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA., Logan KA; Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Montrose, CO, USA., Alldredge MW; Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Fort Collins, CO, USA., Gagne RB; Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA., Kozakiewicz CP; Department of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS., Australia., Kraberger S; Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA., Fountain-Jones NM; Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, USA., Craft ME; Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, USA., Carver S; Department of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS., Australia., Ernest HB; Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, USA., Crooks KR; Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA., VandeWoude S; Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA., Funk WC; Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.; Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Molecular ecology [Mol Ecol] 2019 Nov; Vol. 28 (22), pp. 4926-4940. Date of Electronic Publication: 2019 Nov 01.
DOI: 10.1111/mec.15261
Abstrakt: Apex predators are important indicators of intact natural ecosystems. They are also sensitive to urbanization because they require broad home ranges and extensive contiguous habitat to support their prey base. Pumas (Puma concolor) can persist near human developed areas, but urbanization may be detrimental to their movement ecology, population structure, and genetic diversity. To investigate potential effects of urbanization in population connectivity of pumas, we performed a landscape genomics study of 130 pumas on the rural Western Slope and more urbanized Front Range of Colorado, USA. Over 12,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped using double-digest, restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (ddRADseq). We investigated patterns of gene flow and genetic diversity, and tested for correlations between key landscape variables and genetic distance to assess the effects of urbanization and other landscape factors on gene flow. Levels of genetic diversity were similar for the Western Slope and Front Range, but effective population sizes were smaller, genetic distances were higher, and there was more admixture in the more urbanized Front Range. Forest cover was strongly positively associated with puma gene flow on the Western Slope, while impervious surfaces restricted gene flow and more open, natural habitats enhanced gene flow on the Front Range. Landscape genomic analyses revealed differences in puma movement and gene flow patterns in rural versus urban settings. Our results highlight the utility of dense, genome-scale markers to document subtle impacts of urbanization on a wide-ranging carnivore living near a large urban center.
(© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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