A new subspecies of Ottoman viper, Montivipera xanthina (Gray, 1849), (Squamata: Viperidae) from Geyik Mountains, Mediterranean Turkey.

Ecologica Montenegrina 22: 214-225.

Volltext: https://www.biotaxa.org/em/article/view/em.2019.22.17/56943

Abstract:

A new Ottoman viper subspecies, M. xanthina varoli n. subsp., is described from the higher altitudes of Gündoğmuş (Antalya). The new  subspecies differs from  the  other M. xanthina populations by pholidosis;  higher number of intercanthals and lowernumber of subcaudalia. Also, the whiteness between windings or spots on dorsum pattern were observed in new subspecies, similar to the southern populations. Furthermore, the spots on the ventrals became denser in the mid-body and forms darker colorizationat the end of body of the males and the tail tips are yellowish-orange or light orange on both sexes.

afsar-biblio

Freigegeben in A
Samstag, 15 Januar 2022 16:34

PETERS, G. (1986)

Mixed herds of Common and Defassa waterbuck, Kobus ellipsiprymnus (Artiodactyla: Bovidae), in northern Kenya.

Bonn. zool. Beitr. 37(3): 183-193.

Summary:

Observations of two mixed herds of Common and Defassa Waterhuck with potential hybrids of the two forms in Buffalo Springs Game Reserve, northern Kenya, are reported. Current theories published in the literature as to the distributional history and taxonomic status of the two forms are discussed.

Zusammenfassung:

Die Beobachtung von 2 gemischten Herden mit Ellipsen- und Defassa-Wasserböcken und möglichen Hybriden zwischen beiden Formen in Buffalo Springs Game Reserve, N-Kenia, ist Anlaß für eine Diskussion der in der Literatur publizierten Vorstellungen zu ihrer Verbreitungsgeschichte und zu ihrem taxonomischen Status.

peters-biblio

Freigegeben in P

Genome-Wide Evolutionary Analysis of Natural History and Adaptation in the World’s Tigers.

Current Biology 28 (23). 10.1016/j.cub.2018.09.019.

Abstract:

No other species attracts more international resources, public attention, and protracted controversies over its intraspecific taxonomy than the tiger (Panthera tigris) [1, 2]. Today, fewer than 4,000 free-ranging tigers survive, covering only 7% of their historical range, and debates persist over whether they comprise six, five, or two subspecies [3–6]. The lack of consensus over the number of tiger subspecies has partially hindered the global effort to recover the species from the brink of extinction, as both captive breeding and landscape intervention of wild populations increasingly require an explicit delineation of the conservation management units [7]. The recent coalescence to a late Pleistocene bottleneck (circa 110 kya) [5, 8, 9] poses challenges for detecting tiger subspecific morphological traits, suggesting that elucidating intraspecific evolution in the tiger requires analyses at the genomic scale. Here, we present whole-genome sequencing analyses from 32 voucher specimens that resolve six statistically robust monophyletic clades corresponding to extant subspecies, including the recently recognized Malayan tiger (P. tigris jacksoni). The intersubspecies gene flow is very low, corroborating the recognized phylogeographic units. We identified multiple genomic regions that are candidates for identifying the adaptive divergence of subspecies. The body-size-related gene ADH7 appears to have been strongly selected in the Sumatran tiger, perhaps in association with adaptation to the tropical Sunda Islands. The identified genomic signatures provide a solid basis for recognizing appropriate conservation management units in the tiger and can benefit global conservation strategic planning for this charismatic megafauna icon.

liu-biblio

Freigegeben in L

Planning tiger recovery: Understanding intraspecific variation for effective conservation.

Science Advances  26 Jun 2015: 1 (5) e1400175; DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1400175

Abstract:

Although significantly more money is spent on the conservation of tigers than on any other threatened species, today only 3200 to 3600 tigers roam the forests of Asia, occupying only 7% of their historical range. Despite the global significance of and interest in tiger conservation, global approaches to plan tiger recovery are partly impeded by the lack of a consensus on the number of tiger subspecies or management units, because a comprehensive analysis of tiger variation is lacking. We analyzed variation among all nine putative tiger subspecies, using extensive data sets of several traits [morphological (craniodental and pelage), ecological, molecular]. Our analyses revealed little variation and large overlaps in each trait among putative subspecies, and molecular data showed extremely low diversity because of a severe Late Pleistocene population decline. Our results support recognition of only two subspecies: the Sunda tiger, Panthera tigris sondaica, and the continental tiger, Panthera tigris tigris, which consists of two (northern and southern) management units. Conservation management programs, such as captive breeding, reintroduction initiatives, or trans-boundary projects, rely on a durable, consistent characterization of subspecies as taxonomic units, defined by robust multiple lines of scientific evidence rather than single traits or ad hoc descriptions of one or few specimens. Our multiple-trait data set supports a fundamental rethinking of the conventional tiger taxonomy paradigm, which will have profound implications for the management of in situ and ex situ tiger populations and boost conservation efforts by facilitating a pragmatic approach to tiger conservation management worldwide.

wilting-biblio

Freigegeben in W
Samstag, 15 Dezember 2018 10:38

SCHREIBER, A., WANG, M. & KAUMANNS, W. (1998)

Captive breeding of squirrel monkeys, Saimiri sciureus and Saimiri boliviensis: The problem of hybrid groups.

Zoo Biology 17 (2): 95-109

Abstract:

The electrophoretic variability of blood proteins coding for up to 32 genetic loci was analyzed in 108 squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus, Saimiri boliviensis, hybrids) from two captive colonies. Twelve polymorphic loci with 31 alleles are reported. The biallelic Ada* locus, G‐statistics and Hardy‐Weinberg genotype equilibria are useful for recognizing hybrids between S. sciureus and S. boliviensis. Backcrosses in hybrid stocks and gene flow in a natural hybrid belt, however, complicate the taxonomic diagnosis of captive specimens: S. sciureus phenotypes imported from Peru possessed the allele Ada*132, which generally characterizes S. boliviensis (or species hybrids). The complex taxonomy of Saimiri spp. Requires careful planning of captive breeding. We suggest a genetic analysis of the founder individuals before their inclusion in the European studbook population and to breed S. sciureus from Guyana separately from Peruvian imports, because the latter bear a greater risk of being taxonomically heterogeneous.

schreiber-biblio

Freigegeben in S

Genomic ancestry of the American puma (Puma concolor).

Journal of Heredity 91 (3): 186-197.

Abstract:

Puma concolor, a large American cat species, occupies the most extensive range of any New World terrestrial mammal, spanning 100 degrees of latitude from the Canadian Yukon to the Straits of Magellan. Until the recent Holocene, pumas co-existed with a diverse array of carnivores including the American lion (Panthera atrox), the North American cheetah (Miracynonyx trumani), and the saber toothed tiger (Smilodon fatalis). Genomic DNA specimens from 315 pumas of specified geographic origin (261 contemporary and 54 museum specimens) were collected for molecular genetic and phylogenetic analyses of three mitochondrial gene sequences (16S rRNA, ATPase-8, and NADH-5) plus composite microsatellite genotypes (10 feline loci). Six phylogeographic groupings or subspecies were resolved, and the entire North American population (186 individuals from 15 previously named sub-species) was genetically homogeneous in overall variation relative to central and South American populations. The marked uniformity of mtDNA and a reduction in microsatellite allele size expansion indicates that North American pumas derive from a recent (late Pleistocene circa 10,000 years ago) replacement and recolonization by a small number of founders who themselves originated from a centrum of puma genetic diversity in eastern South America 200,000-300,000 years ago. The recolonization of North American pumas was coincident with a massive late Pleistocene extinction event that eliminated 80% of large vertebrates in North America and may have extirpated pumas from that continent as well.

 

culver-biblio

Freigegeben in C
© Peter Dollinger, Zoo Office Bern hyperworx