ABSTRACT
Abstract The pampas deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus) is close to being classified as 'globally threatened', with the largest population occurring in the Brazilian Pantanal. Since capture is stressful to these animals, non-invasive sampling methods such as the use of feces can provide reliable sources of DNA. The aim of this study was to use fecal samples to evaluate the genetic variability of the Brazilian Pantanal population of pampas deer. Six heterologous microsatellite markers were used to screen 142 stool specimens. Seventy-four deer were identified, of which 50 adults were used to determine the genetic characteristics of the population. The Pantanal population showed high genetic diversity (mean number of alleles per locus = 11.5, expected heterozygosity = 0.75). This is the first investigation to characterize a South American deer species using fecal DNA and demonstrates the usefulness and efficiency of this approach, as well as the feasibility of obtaining information that could not have been easily obtained by traditional DNA sampling. Our findings suggest that management strategies for this species may be much more effective if applied now when the population still shows high genetic variability.
ABSTRACT
More than 90 percent of birds are socially monogamous, although genetic studies indicate that many are often not sexually monogamous. In the present study, DNA fingerprinting was used to estimate the genetic relationships between nestlings belonging to the same broods to evaluate the mating system in the socially monogamous macaw, Ara ararauna. We found that in 10 of 11 broods investigated, the nestlings showed genetic similarity levels congruent with values expected among full-sibs, suggesting that they shared the same parents. However, in one brood, the low genetic similarity observed between nestlings could be a result of intraspecific brood parasitism, intraspecific nest competition or extra-pair paternity. These results, along with available behavioral and life-history data, imply that the blue-and-yellow macaw is not only socially, but also genetically monogamous. However, the occurrence of eventual cases of extra-pair paternity cannot be excluded.
Subject(s)
Animals , DNA Fingerprinting , Parrots/genetics , Sexual Behavior, AnimalABSTRACT
Cross-amplification was tested and variability in microsatellite primers (designed for Neotropical parrots) compared, in five macaw species, viz., three endangered blue macaws (Cyanopsitta spixii [extinct in the wild], Anodorhynchus leari [endangered] and Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus [vulnerable]), and two unthreatened red macaws (Ara chloropterus and Ara macao). Among the primers tested, 84.6 percent successfully amplified products in C. spixii, 83.3 percent in A. leari, 76.4 percent in A. hyacinthinus, 78.6 percent in A. chloropterus and 71.4 percent in A. macao. The mean expected heterozygosity estimated for each species, and based on loci analyzed in all the five, ranged from 0.33 (A. hyacinthinus) to 0.85 (A. macao). As expected, the results revealed lower levels of genetic variability in threatened macaw species than in unthreatened. The low combined probability of genetic identity and the moderate to high potential for paternity exclusion, indicate the utility of the microsatellite loci set selected for each macaw species in kinship and population studies, thus constituting an aid in planning in-situ and ex-situ conservation.
ABSTRACT
Behavior, morphology, allozyme studies and DNA hybridization and sequencing data all suggest the independent evolution of the Old and New World parrots and support tribe status for the American species, although the phylogenetic relationships within this tribe are still poorly understood. A previous study has shown that the Yellow-faced parrot (Amazona xanthops Spix 1824) exhibits large karyotypic differences compared to the other Amazona species and suggested that this species should be renamed Salvatoria xanthops, although the relationships between S. xanthops and the other New World parrots remain unclear. In the present work, we describe the karyotype of the Scaly-headed parrot (Pionus maximiliani, Kuhl 1820) and the karyotype and C-banding pattern of the Short-tailed parrot (Graydidascalus brachyurus, Kuhl 1820) and compare them to the karyotype and C-banding pattern of S. xanthops, as well as to the karyotypes of other New World parrots. The chromosomal similarity between these three species and the karyotypic differences between them and other New World parrots suggest that G. brachyurus and S. xanthops are sister species and are most closely related to members of the genus Pionus.