116 research outputs found
Long-lasting, kin-directed female interactions in a spatially structured wild boar social network
We thank W. Jędrzejewski for his support and logistical help in trapping wild boar. We are grateful to R. Kozak, A. Waszkiewicz and many students and volunteers for their help with fieldwork as well as to A. N. Bunevich, T. Borowik and local hunters for providing genetic samples. Genetic analyses were performed in the laboratory of the Department of Science for Nature and Environmental Resources, University of Sassari, Italy, with the help of L. Iacolina and D. Biosa. We are grateful to K. O’Mahony who revised English and to A. Widdig, K. Langergraber and one anonymous reviewer for valuable comments on the earlier version of the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Winter distribution and abundance of mustelids and beavers in the river valleys of Białowieża Primeval Forest
Rodent cycles in relation to biomass and productivity of ground vegetation and predation in the Palearctic
Predation of Eurasian lynx on roe deer and red deer in Bialowieza Primeral Forest, Poland
Winter home ranges and movements of polecats Mustela putorius in Białowieża Primeval Forest, Poland
Phylogeographic history of grey wolves in Europe
Background: While it is generally accepted that patterns of intra-specific genetic differentiation are substantially
affected by glacial history, population genetic processes occurring during Pleistocene glaciations are still poorly
understood. In this study, we address the question of the genetic consequences of Pleistocene glaciations for
European grey wolves. Combining our data with data from published studies, we analysed phylogenetic relationships
and geographic distribution of mitochondrial DNA haplotypes for 947 contemporary European wolves. We also
compared the contemporary wolf sequences with published sequences of 24 ancient European wolves.
Results: We found that haplotypes representing two haplogroups, 1 and 2, overlap geographically, but substantially
differ in frequency between populations from south-western and eastern Europe. A comparison between haplotypes
from Europe and other continents showed that both haplogroups are spread throughout Eurasia, while only
haplogroup 1 occurs in contemporary North American wolves. All ancient wolf samples from western Europe that
dated from between 44,000 and 1,200 years B.P. belonged to haplogroup 2, suggesting the long-term predominance
of this haplogroup in this region. Moreover, a comparison of current and past frequencies and distributions of the two
haplogroups in Europe suggested that haplogroup 2 became outnumbered by haplogroup 1 during the last several
thousand years.
Conclusions: Parallel haplogroup replacement, with haplogroup 2 being totally replaced by haplogroup 1, has been
reported for North American grey wolves. Taking into account the similarity of diets reported for the late Pleistocene
wolves from Europe and North America, the correspondence between these haplogroup frequency changes may
suggest that they were associated with ecological changes occurring after the Last Glacial Maximum
Home range size, habitat selection and roost use by the whiskered bat (Myotis mystacinus) in human-dominated montane landscapes
Our understanding of animal adaptations to human pressure is limited by the focus on rare
taxa, despite that common species are more significant in shaping structure, function and
service provision of ecosystems. Thus better understanding of their ecology and behavioural adjustments is central for drafting conservation actions. In this study, we used radiotelemetry on 21 individuals (10 females, 11 males) to provide data on spatial ecology, habitat selection and use of roosts of one of the commonest species, the whiskered bat (Myotis
mystacinus), inhabiting the Carpathian Mountains (southern Poland). We tested, whether
this species prefers natural over human-modified landscapes to seek prey and roosts. Mean
home range size of the whiskered bat in the Carpathian Mountains was 26.3 ha (SE ± 3.2,
Local Convex Hull) and 110 ha (SE ± 22.1, Minimum Convex Polygon with all locations),
and included between one and three patches, among which bats moved along linear environmental features, such as scrubby banks of streams or lines of trees. During foraging
whiskered bats selected small woodlands within agricultural landscapes, avoided large
mountain forests and open areas, and used built-up areas proportionally to their availability.
Whiskered bats occupied roosts located mainly in buildings (>97%), at an average altitude
of 547.9 m above sea level (SE ± 8.3). Roosts were used for 5.4 days, on average. Our
study shows that whiskered bats adapted well to the mosaic of semi-natural and anthropogenic habitats. It highlights the importance of buildings serving as roosts and small woodlands used as foraging areas in human-dominated montane landscapes
The roles of predation, snow cover, acorn crop, and man-related factors on ungulate mortality in Białowieża Primeval Forest, Poland
Contemporary genetic structure, phylogeography and past demographic processes of wild boar <i>Sus scrofa</i> population in central and eastern Europe
The wild boar (Sus scrofa) is one of the most widely distributed mammals in Europe. Its demography was affected by various events in the past and today populations are increasing throughout Europe. We examined genetic diversity, structure and population dynamics of wild boar in Central and Eastern Europe. MtDNA control region (664 bp) was sequenced in 254 wild boar from six countries (Poland, Hungary, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova and the European part of Russia). We detected 16 haplotypes, all known from previous studies in Europe; 14 of them belonged to European 1 (E1) clade, including 13 haplotypes from E1-C and one from E1-A lineages. Two haplotypes belonged respectively to the East Asian and the Near Eastern clade. Both haplotypes were found in Russia and most probably originated from the documented translocations of wild boar. The studied populations showed moderate haplotype (0.714 ±0.023) and low nucleotide diversity (0.003 ±0.002). SAMOVA grouped the genetic structuring of Central and Eastern European wild boar into three subpopulations, comprising of: (1) north-eastern Belarus and the European part of Russia, (2) Poland, Ukraine, Moldova and most of Belarus, and (3) Hungary. The multimodal mismatch distribution, Fu's Fs index, Bayesian skyline plot and the high occurrence of shared haplotypes among populations did not suggest strong demographic fluctuations in wild boar numbers in the Holocene and pre-Holocene times. This study showed relatively weak genetic diversity and structure in Central and Eastern European wild boar populations and underlined gaps in our knowledge on the role of southern refugia and demographic processes shaping genetic diversity of wild boar in this part of Europe
Contemporary Genetic Structure, Phylogeography and Past Demographic Processes of Wild Boar Sus scrofa Population in Central and Eastern Europe
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