Dataset Information

Population history, gene flow, and bottlenecks in island populations of a secondary seed disperser, the southern grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis koenigi).

ABSTRACT: Studying the population history and demography of organisms with important ecological roles can aid understanding of evolutionary processes at the community level and inform conservation. We screened genetic variation (mtDNA and microsatellite) across the populations of the southern grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis koenigi) in the Canary Islands, where it is an endemic subspecies and an important secondary seed disperser. We show that the Canarian subspecies is polyphyletic with L. meridionalis elegans from North Africa and that shrikes have colonized the Canary Islands from North Africa multiple times. Substantial differences in genetic diversity exist across islands, which are most likely the product of a combination of historical colonization events and recent bottlenecks. The Eastern Canary Islands had the highest overall levels of genetic diversity and have probably been most recently and/or frequently colonized from Africa. Recent or ongoing bottlenecks were detected in three of the islands and are consistent with anecdotal evidence of population declines due to human disturbance. These findings are troubling given the shrike's key ecological role in the Canary Islands, and further research is needed to understand the community-level consequences of declines in shrike populations. Finally, we found moderate genetic differentiation among populations, which largely reflected the shrike's bottleneck history; however, a significant pattern of isolation-by-distance indicated that some gene flow occurs between islands. This study is a useful first step toward understanding how secondary seed dispersal operates over broad spatial scales.

SUBMITTER: Padilla DP

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4298432 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Population history, gene flow, and bottlenecks in island populations of a secondary seed disperser, the southern grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis koenigi).

Padilla David P DP Spurgin Lewis G LG Fairfield Eleanor A EA Illera Juan Carlos JC Richardson David S DS

Ecology and evolution 20141204 1

Studying the population history and demography of organisms with important ecological roles can aid understanding of evolutionary processes at the community level and inform conservation. We screened genetic variation (mtDNA and microsatellite) across the populations of the southern grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis koenigi) in the Canary Islands, where it is an endemic subspecies and an important secondary seed disperser. We show that the Canarian subspecies is polyphyletic with L. meridionalis ...[more]

PMID: 25628862

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Project description:AimWe combine genetic and stable isotope data to quantify migration patterns in Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus), a species of conservation concern in North America, to assess how connectivity differs and impacts population evolution, ecology, and conservation.LocationWe sampled shrikes across the majority of their nonbreeding range, from the Atlantic Coast to the western United States east of the Rocky Mountains and throughout Mexico.MethodsOur study used a Bayesian framework using ?2Hf from a breeding season origin feather and nuclear genetic microsatellite markers to distinguish between co-occurring migratory and nonmigratory individuals on the wintering grounds and, for migrants, to assign individuals to a breeding ground origin and genetic group.ResultsMigratory shrikes were present throughout the nonbreeding range but the proportion differed among sample areas. Four main wintering areas were identified. Connectivity ranged from weakly negative in birds wintering on the Atlantic Coast to strongly positive between wintering grounds in the southwestern United States and Mexico and northwestern breeding populations. Connectivity was weakest in L. l. migrans, and strongest in L. l. mexicanus and L. l. excubitorides. Although believed to be nonmigratory, long-distance movements of individuals were observed in L. ludovicianus and L. l. mexicanus. Our data support a pattern of chain migration, again most notable in the western half of the species nonbreeding range, and differential migration based on age.Main conclusionsOur study provides of one such of the first quantitative measures of migratory connectivity and is among the first studies of a short-distance migratory passerine in North America. The higher migratory connectivity among western, versus eastern populations, and less severe population declines attributable to habitat loss or reproductive success, may result in more localized and/or less severe limiting factors for western populations and more severe on the Atlantic coast and Mississippi Alluvial Valley wintering grounds.

Dataset Information

Population history, gene flow, and bottlenecks in island populations of a secondary seed disperser, the southern grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis koenigi).

Publications

Population history, gene flow, and bottlenecks in island populations of a secondary seed disperser, the southern grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis koenigi).

Similar Datasets

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