Loss of genetic diversity and differentiation among remnant Panthera onca populations of the Atlantic Forest

HAAG, TAIANA; SANTOS, ANALISIE; SANA, DENIS; MORATO, RONALDO; CULLEN JR., LAURY; CRAWSHAW JR., PETER G.; DE ANGELO, CARLOS; DI BITETTI, MARIO; SALZANO, FRANCISCO; EIZIRIK, EDUARDO

Mendoza, Argentina

Congreso; 10th International Congress of Mammalogy; 2009

CCT CONICET Mendoza (CRICYT), CONICET, IADIZA, GiB, International Federation of Mammalogists, SAREM.

In the Upper Paraná Atlantic Forest (UPAF), spanning southwestern Brazil, northeastern Argentina and eastern Paraguay, jaguars are essentially restricted to semiconnected protected areas each containing a small number of individuals. Field projects have been conducted in this region to investigate the ecology of this felid and to provide relevant information for the development of conservation and management plans on behalf of this species. This field-based information must be complemented by genetic analyses that shed light onto the population dynamics of jaguars in the face of rampant habitat fragmentation. In this study we have characterized the patterns genetic diversity present in remnant jaguar populations of the UPAF. Fifty-nine individuals (23 from the area influenced by the Porto Primavera dam - SP/MS states; 10 from Ivinhema Park - MS; eight from Morro do Diabo Park - SP and 18 from the ‘Green Corridor’ - Argentina/Paraguay/Brazil) were studied using 13 microsatellite loci. We observed evidence of recent allelic loss in local areas and marked genetic differentiation among fragments which were very likely connected until 30-40 years ago. The highest differentiation was between the Green Corridor and Morro do Diabo (FST = 0.198; P = 0.000) and the lowest was between Porto Primavera and Green Corridor (FST = 0.048; P = 0.000). The results suggest strong effects of genetic drift induced by the small effective size in each area, ranging from 51.4 in the Green Corridor to 4.6 in Morro do Diabo, and increasing isolation among them. Assignment test showed evidence of recent demographic connectivity between areas (two migrants and five admixed individuals), which should be maintained or restored to ensure the long term viability of these populations. These results will be integrated into the management plan for this felid developed as part of the efforts to promote its persistence in this ecoregion.