Genetic structure of Greater Rhea (Rhea americana) populations in two regions with different land-uses in central Argentina

ALONSO ROLDÁN V,; ROSSI FRAIRE H.; NAVARRO J.L.; GARDENAL C.N.; MARTELLA M. B.

EMU- AUSTRAL ORNITHOLOGY

CSIRO PUBLISHING

Año: 2009 vol. 109 p. 214 - 221

0158-4197

The distribution of populations of Greater Rhea (Rhea americana) are fragmented, probably owing to theconversion of grasslands to croplands. This study analyses the genetic structure of populations of Greater Rhea in areas withdifferent degrees of anthropogenic alteration. Molecular variation was evaluated using Inter Simple Sequence Repeats(ISSR) markers in five wild populations that inhabit an agroecosystem and an area of semi-natural grassland. The populationswere polymorphic for 23.33% of loci, with an average genetic diversity of 0.0822, and the populations of the two regionsshowed similar levels of variability. This low level of polymorphism may have be a result of historical bottlenecks and thelong generation time of this species. The analysis of molecular variance showed highly significant differencesamong populations and non-significant differences between regions. The effects of habitat changes might not be themost important factor determining the genetic differentiation among populations currently. However, as modification oflandscape structure of the Pampas grasslands could be more severe in the future, conservation of the Greater Rhearequires careful land-use planning.