Dataset Information

Genetic connectivity across marginal habitats: the elephants of the Namib Desert.

ABSTRACT: Locally isolated populations in marginal habitats may be genetically distinctive and of heightened conservation concern. Elephants inhabiting the Namib Desert have been reported to show distinctive behavioral and phenotypic adaptations in that severely arid environment. The genetic distinctiveness of Namibian desert elephants relative to other African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana) populations has not been established. To investigate the genetic structure of elephants in Namibia, we determined the mitochondrial (mt) DNA control region sequences and genotyped 17 microsatellite loci in desert elephants (n = 8) from the Hoanib River catchment and the Hoarusib River catchment. We compared these to the genotypes of elephants (n = 77) from other localities in Namibia. The mtDNA haplotype sequences and frequencies among desert elephants were similar to those of elephants in Etosha National Park, the Huab River catchment, the Ugab River catchment, and central Kunene, although the geographically distant Caprivi Strip had different mtDNA haplotypes. Likewise, analysis of the microsatellite genotypes of desert-dwelling elephants revealed that they were not genetically distinctive from Etosha elephants, and there was no evidence for isolation by distance across the Etosha region. These results, and a review of the historical record, suggest that a high learning capacity and long-distance migrations allowed Namibian elephants to regularly shift their ranges to survive in the face of high variability in climate and in hunting pressure.

SUBMITTER: Ishida Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5016642 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Genetic connectivity across marginal habitats: the elephants of the Namib Desert.

Ishida Yasuko Y Van Coeverden de Groot Peter J PJ Leggett Keith E A KE Putnam Andrea S AS Fox Virginia E VE Lai Jesse J Boag Peter T PT Georgiadis Nicholas J NJ Roca Alfred L AL

Ecology and evolution 20160803 17

Locally isolated populations in marginal habitats may be genetically distinctive and of heightened conservation concern. Elephants inhabiting the Namib Desert have been reported to show distinctive behavioral and phenotypic adaptations in that severely arid environment. The genetic distinctiveness of Namibian desert elephants relative to other African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana) populations has not been established. To investigate the genetic structure of elephants in Namibia, we deter ...[more]

PMID: 27648236

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Project description:The fog-basking behavior of the Onymacris unguicularis, a beetle species living in the coastal regions of the Namibian desert, has recently caught the attention of the engineering community, as suggesting a viable biomimetic approach to address the problem of harvesting water in arid regions of the globe. Previous research has focused on observation and analysis of the beetle's elytron properties and how these affect fog-collection rates. The head stance taken by the Onymacris unguicularis when fog basking is well documented. However, how this stance affects droplet collection has not been studied up to now. The present paper addresses this problem from a computational fluid dynamics perspective, where three-dimensional numerical simulations are used to characterize the fog flow properties around a simplified geometry mimicking the beetle's body. The simulations employ two-way coupling between the gas flow and the dispersed fog phase to account for feedback effects of fog droplets on the carrier fluid (air), and assume that droplets are captured after hitting the elytron surface. The study considers several combinations of free-stream velocity and droplet volume fraction. The analysis reveals that there is a range of head-stance angles, corresponding to an inclination of the beetle between 35 deg and 45 deg with respect to the horizon, that maximizes water collection on the beetle's back, in qualitative agreement with observations in nature and laboratory experiments. A rationale is proposed to explain this phenomenon, finding that the specific head stance corresponds to the maximum residence time of fluid particles above the beetle's elytron surface. This, in turn, designates the maximum likelihood for water droplets to be captured in the boundary layer developing over the beetle and subsequently hit the surface where they get captured. The results reveal the importance of the fluid flow pattern around the beetle's body in addition to the microphysical properties of the elytron when reliable predictions of the water droplet collection efficiency are sought.

Dataset Information

Genetic connectivity across marginal habitats: the elephants of the Namib Desert.

Publications

Genetic connectivity across marginal habitats: the elephants of the Namib Desert.

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