Combining ranger records and biogeographical models to identify the current and potential distribution of an expanding mesocarnivore in southern Europe.

Human-wildlife conflicts (HWC) are increasing and are potentially harmful to both people and wildlife. Understanding the current and potential distribution of wildlife species involved in HWC, such as carnivores, is essential for implementing management and conservation measures for such species. In this study, we assessed both the current distribution and potential distribution (forecast) of the Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon) in the central part of the Iberian Peninsula. We acquired data concerning mongoose occurrences through an online questionnaire sent to environmental rangers. We used the municipality level as the sampling unit because all municipalities within the study area were covered at least by one ranger. Using the information provided by rangers (i.e. occurrences in their municipalities), we constructed environmental favourability distribution models to assess current and potential mongoose distribution through current distribution models (CDM) and ecological models (EM), respectively. >300 rangers participated in the survey and mongooses were reported in a total of 181 of 921 municipalities studied. The CDM model showed a current distribution mainly concentrated on the western part of the study area, where intermediate-high favourability values predominated. The EM model revealed a wider potential distribution, including the south-east part of the study area, which was also characterised by intermediate-high favourability values. Our predictions were verified using independent data, including confirmation of mongoose reproduction by rangers, reports by other experts, and field sampling in some areas. Our innovative approach based on an online survey to rangers coupled with environmental favourability models is shown to be a useful methodology for assessing the current distribution of cryptic but expanding wildlife species, while also enabling estimations of future steps in their expansion. The approach proposed may help policy decision-makers seeking to ensure the conservation of expanding wildlife species, for example, by designing awareness campaigns in areas where the target species is expected to arrive.

Investigation of PRRS Virus Infection in Hungarian Wild Boar Populations during Its Eradication from Domestic Pig Herds.

Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) significantly impacts the pig farming industry globally, leading to economic losses due to reduced productivity. This study focuses on assessing the presence and impact of PRRS within Hungarian wild boar populations amidst efforts to eradicate the virus from domestic pig herds. We used a combination of serological and virological tests on samples collected from wild boars across Hungary to evaluate the prevalence of PRRS virus and its potential transmission risks to domestic pigs. Our findings reveal a low seropositivity rate in wild boars, suggesting a minimal role of wild boars in the transmission of PRRS to domestic pig populations. Moreover, no relationship was found between domestic pig and wild boar densities, emphasizing the limited interaction and consequent risk of disease spread between these populations. We confirm the effectiveness of Hungary's PRRS eradication measures among domestic herds and highlight the negligible risk posed by wild boars in re-introducing the PRRS virus.

An epigenetic toolbox for conservation biologists.

Ongoing climatic shifts and increasing anthropogenic pressures demand an efficient delineation of conservation units and accurate predictions of populations' resilience and adaptive potential. Molecular tools involving DNA sequencing are nowadays routinely used for these purposes. Yet, most of the existing tools focusing on sequence-level information have shortcomings in detecting signals of short-term ecological relevance. Epigenetic modifications carry valuable information to better link individuals, populations, and species to their environment. Here, we discuss a series of epigenetic monitoring tools that can be directly applied to various conservation contexts, complementing already existing molecular monitoring frameworks. Focusing on DNA sequence-based methods (e.g. DNA methylation, for which the applications are readily available), we demonstrate how (a) the identification of epi-biomarkers associated with age or infection can facilitate the determination of an individual's health status in wild populations; (b) whole epigenome analyses can identify signatures of selection linked to environmental conditions and facilitate estimating the adaptive potential of populations; and (c) epi-eDNA (epigenetic environmental DNA), an epigenetic-based conservation tool, presents a non-invasive sampling method to monitor biological information beyond the mere presence of individuals. Overall, our framework refines conservation strategies, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of species' adaptive potential and persistence on ecologically relevant timescales.

Treed Gaussian processes for animal movement modeling.

Wildlife telemetry data may be used to answer a diverse range of questions relevant to wildlife ecology and management. One challenge to modeling telemetry data is that animal movement often varies greatly in pattern over time, and current continuous-time modeling approaches to handle such nonstationarity require bespoke and often complex models that may pose barriers to practitioner implementation. We demonstrate a novel application of treed Gaussian process (TGP) modeling, a Bayesian machine learning approach that automatically captures the nonstationarity and abrupt transitions present in animal movement. The machine learning formulation of TGPs enables modeling to be nearly automated, while their Bayesian formulation allows for the derivation of movement descriptors with associated uncertainty measures. We demonstrate the use of an existing R package to implement TGPs using the familiar Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm. We then use estimated movement trajectories to derive movement descriptors that can be compared across individuals and populations. We applied the TGP model to a case study of lesser prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) to demonstrate the benefits of TGP modeling and compared distance traveled and residence times across lesser prairie-chicken individuals and populations. For broad usability, we outline all steps necessary for practitioners to specify relevant movement descriptors (e.g., turn angles, speed, contact points) and apply TGP modeling and trajectory comparison to their own telemetry datasets. Combining the predictive power of machine learning and the statistical inference of Bayesian methods to model movement trajectories allows for the estimation of statistically comparable movement descriptors from telemetry studies. Our use of an accessible R package allows practitioners to model trajectories and estimate movement descriptors, facilitating the use of telemetry data to answer applied management questions.

A taste of wilderness: supplementary feeding of red deer (Cervus elaphus) increases individual bacterial microbiota diversity but lowers abundance of important gut symbionts.

The gut microbiome plays a crucial role in the health and well-being of animals. It is especially critical for ruminants that depend on this bacterial community for digesting their food. In this study, we investigated the effects of management conditions and supplemental feeding on the gut bacterial microbiota of red deer (Cervus elaphus) in the Bavarian Forest National Park, Germany. Fecal samples were collected from free-ranging deer, deer within winter enclosures, and deer in permanent enclosures. The samples were analyzed by high-throughput sequencing of the 16 S rRNA gene. The results showed that the gut bacterial microbiota differed in diversity, abundance, and heterogeneity within and between the various management groups. Free-ranging deer exhibited lower alpha diversity compared with deer in enclosures, probably because of the food supplementation available to the animals within the enclosures. Free-living individuals also showed the highest beta diversity, indicating greater variability in foraging grounds and plant species selection. Moreover, free-ranging deer had the lowest abundance of potentially pathogenic bacterial taxa, suggesting a healthier gut microbiome. Winter-gated deer, which spent some time in enclosures, exhibited intermediate characteristics between free-ranging and all-year-gated deer. These findings suggest that the winter enclosure management strategy, including supplementary feeding with processed plants and crops, has a significant impact on the gut microbiome composition of red deer. Overall, this study provides important insights into the effects of management conditions, particularly winter enclosure practices, on the gut microbiome of red deer. Understanding these effects is crucial for assessing the potential health implications of management strategies and highlights the value of microbiota investigations as health marker.

Dissecting the Effects of Cephenemyia stimulator on the Olfactory Turbinates and Nasopharynx of Roe Deers (Capreolus capreolus).

Nasopharyngeal myiasis in European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) is a pathological condition caused by the larval stages of Cephenemyia stimulator, a fly from the Oestridae family. These larvae reside in the host's upper respiratory tract for months, inducing significant tissue damage and clinical symptoms. The lifecycle of Cephenemyia stimulator is complex, involving three larval stages before maturation into adult flies, with each stage contributing to the progressive pathology observed in the host. Despite their prevalence, the histopathological effects of these larvae in the nasal and nasopharyngeal cavities have been understudied. Our study fills this knowledge gap by providing a detailed histopathological analysis of the affected tissues, using various staining techniques to reveal the extent and nature of the damage caused by these parasitic larvae. This histopathological examination reveals significant alterations within the nasopharyngeal mucosa and nasal cavity, including erythematous changes, mucosal metaplasia, fibrosis, and tissue necrosis. Parasitic cysts and eosinophilic infiltration further characterize the impact of the infestation, compromising not only the mucosal integrity but also potentially the olfactory function of the affected animals. This research is crucial for understanding the impact of myiasis on both the health and olfactory capabilities of roe deer populations and could have significant implications for wildlife management and conservation.

Between conflict and reciprocal habituation: Human-wild boar coexistence in urban areas.

Urbanization is an ongoing global environmental change. Wildlife may respond using anthropized environments and resources, which is known as synurbization, creating human-wildlife interactions. Wild boar (Sus scrofa) populations have become common in urban areas, including the metropolitan area of Barcelona. Humans respond to wild boars in urban environments either habituating, with lower conflict perception and higher wild boar acceptance, or sensitizing, with reduced tolerance towards wild boars. Since citizen response influences conflict management, this study analysed the drivers of human responses, which should allow adopting socially-accepted measures to manage synurbic wild boar populations. Interviews to 1956 Barcelona citizens were performed, grouping the response variables to score citizen and urban characteristics, as well as citizen lay-knowledge, emotions, experiences, and perception of wild boar. Five citizen clusters were identified: cluster 1 (3.3 %), highly habituated and active wild boar feeder; cluster 2 (11.3 %), habituated to wild boars with positive feelings; cluster 3 (19.8 %), not habituated nor sensitized, willing to maintain urban wild boar populations; cluster 4 (29.1 %), sensitized and concerned, defending to reduce wild boar; and cluster 5 (40.1 %), highly sensitized and proposing to reduce or even eliminate wild boar. Positive attitudes associated wild boar to aesthetic value, closeness to nature and sympathy, and were more frequent in young citizens with urban background and high education, animal lovers habituated to wild boar through contact without negative experiences. Conversely, negative attitudes were concerned about city fouling, safety or health, accepted lethal management measures, and were more frequent in older citizens with rural background, lower education, low contact with wild boar or sensitized through negative experiences. We document for the first time the sensitization and reciprocal habituation of humans to wild boar in urban areas. The identification of the drivers of citizen attitudes towards urban wildlife should be useful to design socially-accepted management measures.

What drives wild boar density and population growth in Mediterranean environments?

Accurate prediction of fluctuations of wildlife local number of individuals is crucial for effective population management to minimise human-wildlife conflicts. Climate, habitat, food availability, and density dependence are among the main factors influencing mammalian population dynamics. In southern Europe, precipitation and temperature, particularly during summer have been suggested as key factors affecting wild boar (Sus scrofa L.). However, there is uncertainty regarding the role of these factors and the mechanisms driving population fluctuations. This study utilized long-term data of wild boar populations from 14 study sites collected for 23 years in Catalonia, Spain, to analyse the factors that drive population density and growth rate. Generalized Additive Mixed Models (GAMM) explained respectively, 94 % and 65 % of the density and growth rate variability. Spring precipitation in both current and previous year, female weight, and forest cover (particularly above 60 %) were directly associated with higher wild boar densities and population growth rates. The interaction between crop cover and total annual precipitation also played a significant role in determining population density. Higher densities were linked to lower population growth in the following year, likely due to a density-dependent process. These results suggest that the expected decrease in rainfall linked with global warming may limit the availability of natural resources and potentially slow wild boar population growth. Nevertheless, wild boar can exploit alternative anthropogenic food sources, potentially leading to an increase of human-wildlife conflicts. Therefore, incorporating management policies aimed at restricting wild boar access to human food sources is key for controlling their reproductive output. Additionally, landscape management strategies targeted at diminishing refuge and resource availability in regions experiencing high wild boar impact are essential for contributing to sustainable coexistence between wild boars and human populations.

The low survival rate of European hare leverets in arable farmland: evidence from the predation experiment.

The low survival rate of leverets may significantly contribute to steep population declines and slow recovery of European hares (Lepus europaeus). However, the leveret survival rate in farmlands with different landscape structures is poorly understood, and the existing evidence comes mainly from Western Europe. In this study, we explored the survival of leveret hare dummies along linear semi-natural habitats in homogeneous Central European arable farmland during the main part of the European hare reproduction period (March-April) in 2019 and 2020. The survival rate of hare leverets during the 14-day period was only 22.2%, and all predation events were recorded during the first six days of the experiment. Mammalian predators were responsible for 53.1% of predation events, avian predators for 40.8%, and agricultural operations for 6.1%. The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) was the dominant predator in our study area and was the primary cause of leveret dummy mortality (32.7%), but it also had the highest use-intensity and visit frequency of all of the study plots. Predation by avian predators was associated with patches of lower vegetation height and cover (such as plowed fields) and during daylight hours, whereas the opposite was true for mammalian predators. We propose that improving the habitat quality of arable landscapes by increasing the proportion and quality of extensively used non-farmed habitats (e.g., set-asides, wildflower areas, extensive meadows, fallow land, and semi-natural habitats on arable land) providing cover and shelter for leverets could be an effective management measure for reducing predation risk on leverets.

Evaluating hunting and capture methods for urban wild boar population management.

Wild ungulates are expanding in range and number worldwide leading to an urgent need to manage their populations to minimize conflicts and promote coexistence with humans. In the metropolitan area of Barcelona (MAB), wild boar is the main wildlife species causing a nuisance, from traffic accidents to health risks. Selective harvesting of specific sex and age classes and reducing anthropogenic food resources would be the most efficient approach to dealing with overpopulation. Nonetheless, there is a gap in knowledge regarding the age and sex selectivity of the capture methods currently applied in the MAB for wild boar population control. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the performance and age and sex bias of different hunting and capture methods and the seasonal patterns in their performance (number of captured individuals per event). From February 2014 to August 2022, 1454 wild boars were captured in the MAB using drop net, teleanaesthesia, cage traps, night stalks, and drive hunting. We applied generalized linear models (GLM) to compare the performance of these methods for the total number of wild boars, the wild boars belonging to each age category (i.e., adult, yearling, and juvenile), and for each season. The studied capture methods showed age-class bias and sex bias in adults (>2 years). Drive hunting and drop net removed mainly adult females and yearlings (1-2 years), with drive hunting having the highest performance for adult males. Instead, cage traps and drop net were the best methods to capture juveniles (<1 year). Overall, global performance was higher in summer, decreasingly followed by autumn and spring, winter being the worst performing season. Wildlife managers and researchers should consider the different performance and sex and age bias of each hunting and capture method, as well as the associated public cost, to improve efficiency and achieve the best results in wild boar population management.

Population Viability Analysis on Chinese Goral Indicates an Extinction Risk for a Local Population in Beijing, China.

The Chinese goral (Naemorhedus griseus) is identified as a vulnerable species on the Red List of China's Biodiversity and listed as a national second-class key protected wild animal in China. It is a representative flagship ungulate in Beijing. Its distribution range is fragmented and small populations are separated by dense infrastructures and tourism sites. Understanding its population status provides a foundation to plan effective conservation strategies. In this study, a population viability analysis was conducted with VORTEX (10.5.6.0) on a Chinese goral population in Beijing Yunmengshan Nature Reserve with the data collected by camera trapping and parameters referenced from other goral populations. The results show that this population will initially increase in the next 20 years and then decrease with a 32% probability of extinction risk. Supplementation with four adults, two females and two males, every 10 years would help minimize the extinction risk of this population. The results highlight the vital limiting factors for Chinese goral, including the initial population size, sex ratio at birth and mortality of infants (especially female infants). To improve the protection efficiency, detailed population parameters should be further acquired through continuous monitoring of this population. A thorough large-scale study should be carried out on other segregated goral populations in Beijing to facilitate the recovery of this endangered species.

The influence of gene flow on population viability in an isolated urban caracal population.

Wildlife populations are becoming increasingly fragmented by anthropogenic development. Small and isolated populations often face an elevated risk of extinction, in part due to inbreeding depression. Here, we examine the genomic consequences of urbanization in a caracal (Caracal caracal) population that has become isolated in the Cape Peninsula region of the City of Cape Town, South Africa, and is thought to number ~50 individuals. We document low levels of migration into the population over the past ~75 years, with an estimated rate of 1.3 effective migrants per generation. As a consequence of this isolation and small population size, levels of inbreeding are elevated in the contemporary Cape Peninsula population (mean FROH = 0.20). Inbreeding primarily manifests as long runs of homozygosity >10 Mb, consistent with the effects of isolation due to the rapid recent growth of Cape Town. To explore how reduced migration and elevated inbreeding may impact future population dynamics, we parameterized an eco-evolutionary simulation model. We find that if migration rates do not change in the future, the population is expected to decline, though with a low projected risk of extinction. However, if migration rates decline or anthropogenic mortality rates increase, the potential risk of extinction is greatly elevated. To avert a population decline, we suggest that translocating migrants into the Cape Peninsula to initiate a genetic rescue may be warranted in the near future. Our analysis highlights the utility of genomic datasets coupled with computational simulation models for investigating the influence of gene flow on population viability.

Historical fragmentation and stepping-stone gene flow led to population genetic differentiation in a coastal seabird.

Understanding the forces that shape population genetic structure is fundamental both for understanding evolutionary trajectories and for conservation. Many factors can influence the geographic distribution of genetic variation, and the extent to which local populations differ can be especially difficult to predict in highly mobile organisms. For example, many species of seabirds are essentially panmictic, but some show strong structure. Pigeon Guillemots (Cepphus columba; Charadriiformes: Alcidae) breed in small colonies scattered along the North Pacific coastline and feed in shallow nearshore waters year-round. Given their distribution, gene flow is potentially lower and population genetic structure is stronger than in most other high-latitude Northern Hemisphere seabirds. We screened variation in the mitochondrial control region, four microsatellite loci, and two nuclear introns in 202 Pigeon Guillemots representing three of five subspecies. Mitochondrial sequences and nuclear loci both showed significant population differences, although structure was weaker for the nuclear loci. Genetic differentiation was correlated with geographic distance between sampling locations for both the mitochondrial and nuclear loci. Mitochondrial gene trees and demographic modeling both provided strong evidence for two refugial populations during the Pleistocene glaciations: one in the Aleutian Islands and one farther east and south. We conclude that historical fragmentation combined with a stepping-stone model of gene flow led to the relatively strong population differentiation in Pigeon Guillemots compared to other high-latitude Northern Hemisphere seabird species. Our study adds to growing evidence that Pleistocene glaciation events affected population genetic structure not only in terrestrial species but also in coastal marine animals.

Season, prey availability, sex, and age explain prey size selection in a large solitary carnivore.

Prey selection is a fundamental aspect of ecology that drives evolution and community structure, yet the impact of intraspecific variation on the selection for prey size remains largely unaccounted for in ecological theory. Here, we explored puma (Puma concolor) prey selection across six study sites in North and South America. Our results highlighted the strong influence of season and prey availability on puma prey selection, and the smaller influence of puma age. Pumas in all sites selected smaller prey in warmer seasons following the ungulate birth pulse. Our top models included interaction terms between sex and age, suggesting that males more than females select larger prey as they age, which may reflect experiential learning. When accounting for variable sampling across pumas in our six sites, male and female pumas killed prey of equivalent size, even though males are larger than females, challenging assumptions about this species. Nevertheless, pumas in different study sites selected prey of different sizes, emphasizing that the optimal prey size for pumas is likely context-dependent and affected by prey availability. The mean prey weight across all sites averaged 1.18 times mean puma weight, which was less than predicted as the optimal prey size by energetics and ecological theory (optimal prey = 1.45 puma weight). Our results help refine our understanding of optimal prey for pumas and other solitary carnivores, as well as corroborate recent research emphasizing that carnivore prey selection is impacted not just by energetics but by the effects of diverse ecology.

Epigenetic clocks, sex markers and age-class diagnostics in three harvested large mammals.

The development of epigenetic clocks, or the DNA methylation-based inference of age, is an emerging tool for ageing in free ranging populations. In this study, we developed epigenetic clocks for three species of large mammals that are the focus of extensive management throughout their range in North America: white-tailed deer, black bear and mountain goat. We quantified differential DNA methylation patterns at over 30,000 cytosine-guanine sites (CpGs) from tissue samples of all three species (black bear n = 49; white-tailed deer n = 47; mountain goat n = 45). We used a penalized regression model (elastic net) to build explanatory (black bear r = .95; white-tailed deer r = .99; mountain goat r = .97) and robust (black bear Median Absolute Error or MAE = 1.33; white-tailed deer MAE = 0.29; mountain goat MAE = 0.61) models of age or clocks. We also characterized individual CpG sites within each species that demonstrated clear differences in methylation levels between age classes and sex, which can be used to develop a suite of accessible diagnostic markers. This tool has the potential to contribute to wildlife monitoring by providing easily obtainable representations of age structure in managed populations.

Development and evaluation of a novel single nucleotide polymorphism panel for North American bison.

Genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping platforms have become increasingly popular in characterizing livestock and wildlife populations, replacing traditional methods such as microsatellite fragment analysis. Herein, we report the development and evaluation of a novel bison SNP panel for population management and conservation. Initially, 2474 autosomal SNPs were selected from existing bison whole-genome sequences and variable sites among bison on the GGSP bovine 50K Chip, based on minor allele frequency, data completeness, and chromosome location. Additionally, 20 mitochondrial SNPs were chosen to identify known mitochondrial haplotypes in bison according to previous research. The SNPs were further evaluated using genotyping-by-sequencing with 190 bison, representing the historical lineages that survived the major population crash of the late 1800s. Variants with high potential for genotyping error were filtered out, and the remaining SNPs were placed on a custom Illumina™ array. The final panel consisting of 798 autosomal and 13 mitochondrial SNPs was used to establish baseline genetic parameters, compare populations, and assign mitochondrial haplotypes in 995 bison across ten populations. These SNPs were also found to be highly informative for individual animal identification and parentage assignment. This SNP panel provides a powerful new method to establish a baseline for estimating genetic health of bison populations and a new tool for bison managers to make informed management decisions based on genetic information specific to their populations.

Collaboration and engagement with decision-makers are needed to reduce evidence complacency in wildlife management.

There exists an extensive, diverse, and robust evidence base to support complex decisions that address the planetary biodiversity crisis. However, it is generally not sought or used by environmental decision-makers, who instead draw on intuition, experience, or opinion to inform important decisions. Thus, there is a need to examine evidence exchange processes in wildlife management to understand the multiple inputs to decisions. Here, we adopt a novel approach, fuzzy cognitive mapping (FCM), to examine perceptions of individuals from Indigenous and Western governments on the reliability of evidence which may influence freshwater fisheries management decisions in British Columbia, Canada. We facilitated four FCM workshops participants representing Indigenous or Western regulatory/governance groups of fisheries managers. Our results show that flows of evidence to decision-makers occur within a relatively closed governance network, constrained to the few well-connected decision-making organizations (i.e., wildlife management agencies) and their close partners. This implies that increased collaboration (i.e., knowledge co-production) and engagement (i.e., knowledge brokerage) with wildlife managers and decision-makers are needed to produce actionable evidence and increase evidence exchange.

Demographic and evolutionary consequences of hunting of wild birds.

Hunting has a long tradition in human evolutionary history and remains a common leisure activity or an important source of food. Herein, we first briefly review the literature on the demographic consequences of hunting and associated analytical methods. We then address the question of potential selective hunting and its possible genetic/evolutionary consequences. Birds have historically been popular models for demographic studies, and the huge amount of census and ringing data accumulated over the last century has paved the way for research about the demographic effects of harvesting. By contrast, the literature on the evolutionary consequences of harvesting is dominated by studies on mammals (especially ungulates) and fish. In these taxa, individuals selected for harvest often have particular traits such as large body size or extravagant secondary sexual characters (e.g. antlers, horns, etc.). Our review shows that targeting individuals according to such genetically heritable traits can exert strong selective pressures and alter the evolutionary trajectory of populations for these or correlated traits. Studies focusing on the evolutionary consequences of hunting in birds are extremely rare, likely because birds within populations appear much more similar, and do not display individual differences to the same extent as many mammals and fishes. Nevertheless, even without conscious choice by hunters, there remains the potential for selection through hunting in birds, for example by genetically inherited traits such as personality or pace-of-life. We emphasise that because so many bird species experience high hunting pressure, the possible selective effect of harvest in birds and its evolutionary consequences deserves far more attention, and that hunting may be one major driver of bird evolutionary trajectories that should be carefully considered in wildlife management schemes.

Low but highly geographically structured genomic diversity of East Asian Eurasian otters and its conservation implications.

Populations of Eurasian otters Lutra lutra, one of the most widely distributed apex predators in Eurasia, have been depleted mainly since the 1950s. However, a lack of information about their genomic diversity and how they are organized geographically in East Asia severely impedes our ability to monitor and conserve them in particular management units. Here, we re-sequenced and analyzed 20 otter genomes spanning continental East Asia, including a population at Kinmen, a small island off the Fujian coast, China. The otters form three genetic clusters (one of L. l. lutra in the north and two of L. l. chinensis in the south), which have diverged in the Holocene. These three clusters should be recognized as three conservation management units to monitor and manage independently. The heterozygosity of the East Asian otters is as low as that of the threatened carnivores sequenced. Historical effective population size trajectories inferred from genomic variations suggest that their low genomic diversity could be partially attributed to changes in the climate since the mid-Pleistocene and anthropogenic intervention since the Holocene. However, no evidence of genetic erosion, mutation load, or high level of inbreeding was detected in the presumably isolated Kinmen Island population. Any future in situ conservation efforts should consider this information for the conservation management units.

An insight into vitamin E and lipid nutrition of the plains-wanderer Pedionomus torquatus.

Vitamin E, as α-tocopherol, is an essential antioxidant protecting the body from free radicals. The vitamin E requirement of managed wildlife species is known to be greater than their wild counterparts, predominantly due to higher dietary lipid content and potentially stressful environments. The plains-wanderer (Pedionomus torquatus, Family Pedionomidae [monotypical]) is a critically endangered, superficially quail-like bird that is the focus of an ongoing captive breeding programme in Australia. It is estimated that plains-wanderers have a high vitamin E requirement (compared with domestic poultry species) to offset a high lipid diet and their naturally flighty temperament. This study therefore aims to gain a greater understanding of the nutritional status and vitamin E requirements of plains-wanderers in managed environments. Total lipid and α-tocopherol intake were quantified for 26 zoo-managed plains-wanderers over a series of diet intake trials in addition to measurement of plasma α-tocopherol and cholesterol concentrations. Plains-wanderers that consumed higher portions of dietary fat had significantly lower circulating α-tocopherol concentrations than birds that consumed lower total dietary fat (p < .001). Additionally, plasma cholesterol concentrations of managed plains-wanderers were found to be significantly greater than all other bird species reviewed, irrespective of Family or feeding type. We also present the first published data quantifying the nutritional makeup of stomach contents of a wild plains-wanderer for use as a potential guide for diet formulation. This study forms a vital foundational insight into the nutritional management of plains-wanderers, but further research is required to understand their dietary habits and cholesterol metabolism.