Distribution and genetic status of brown bears in FYR Macedonia: implications for conservation

Abstract Conservation and management of large carnivores is often hampered by the lack of information of basic biological parameters. This is particularly true for brown bears (Ursus arctos) in the Former Yugoslav Republic (FYR) of Macedonia. The bear population in this country is important, as it links bear populations of the central part of the DinaricPindos population and the endangered population to the south in Greece. The aim of this study was to assess bear presence in FYR Macedonia and to provide the first evaluation of the genetic status of the species in this country. Bear presence was assessed through a questionnaire and sign surveys, while the genetic status of the species was evaluated through noninvasive genetic sampling from power poles and microsatellite analysis. The results of the study indicate the continuous and permanent presence of brown bears in FYR Macedonia from the border to Kosovo in the northwest, along the border to Albania and Greece in the south; bear presence around Mount Kožuf in the south of the country was seasonal. High levels of genetic diversity were recorded, and it appears that this bear population is currently not threatened by low genetic variability. Cross-border movements of bears between FYR Macedonia and Greece were documented, indicating the presence of an interconnected population and outlining the necessity for a coordinated international approach in the monitoring and conservation of the species in southeastern Europe

A reduced SNP panel to trace gene flow across southern European wolf populations and detect hybridization with other Canis taxa

[EN] Intra- and inter-specific gene flow are natural evolutionary processes. However, human-induced hybridization is a global conservation concern across taxa, and the development of discriminant genetic markers to differentiate among gene flow processes is essential. Wolves (Canis lupus) are affected by hybridization, particularly in southern Europe, where ongoing recolonization of historic ranges is augmenting gene flow among divergent populations. Our aim was to provide diagnostic canid markers focused on the long-divergent Iberian, Italian and Dinaric wolf populations, based on existing genomic resources. We used 158 canid samples to select a panel of highly informative single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to (i) distinguish wolves in the three regions from domestic dogs (C. l. familiaris) and golden jackals (C. aureus), and (ii) identify their first two hybrid generations. The resulting 192 SNPs correctly identified the five canid groups, all simulated first-generation (F1) hybrids (0.482≤Qi≤0.512 between their respective parental groups) and all first backcross (BC1) individuals (0.723≤Qi≤0.827 to parental groups). An assay design and test with invasive and non-invasive canid samples performed successfully for 178 SNPs. By separating natural population admixture from inter-specific hybridization, our reduced panel can help advance evolutionary research, monitoring, and timely conservation management.We thank S. Czarnomska, A. Galov, J. Harmoinen, E. Velli, D. Battilani, P. Aragno, P. Genovesi, and the Mam- mal Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences, for their assistance. We are also grateful to two anonymous reviewers for their constructive feedback that greatly improved our manuscript. Funding was provided to ISPRA by the Italian Ministry of Environment (MATTM; Direzione Tutela della Natura) and Regione Emilia Romagna (Assessorato Agricoltura) within a multi-year collaborative project to genotype and monitor the Italian wolf population. AVS was supported by a senior postdoctoral fellowship from Insubria University, Italy. RG was sup- ported by a research contract from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technolog

R package "resamplediversity" containing genotypes of brown bears from Dinaric Mountains and all functions required to use the reference population approach.

This is an R package containing all data and functions for running analyses presented in the manuscript. You will need R (www.r-project.org). You will need to install adegenet package (command: install.packages("adegenet")), and then this downloaded file (command: install.packages(file.choose(),repos=NULL)). Select resamplediversity_1.0.zip when the "File" dialog pops up. When the package is installed, invoke it from within R with library(resamplediversity). There is a user-friendly vignette: vignette("resamplediversity")

Vignette for "resamplediversity" package.

User friendly, hands-on, example based tutorial to the data and functions provided in resamplediversity package. Includes a walk-through through the analyses presented in the manuscript

Recovery of large carnivores in Europe\u27s modern human-dominated landscapes

The conservation of large carnivores represents a formidable challenge for biodiversity conservation. Using a dataset on the past and current status of brown bears (Ursus arctos), Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), grey wolves (Canis lupus), and wolverines (Gulo gulo) in European countries, we show that roughly one-third of mainland Europe hosts at least one large carnivore species, with stable or increasing abundance in most cases in 21st-century records. The reasons for this overall conservation success include protective legislations, supportive public opinion as well as a variety of practices making coexistence between large carnivores and people possible. The European situation reveals that large carnivores and people can successfully share the same landscape

Use of GPS location clusters analysis to study predation, feeding, and maternal behavior of the Eurasian lynx

Analysis of global positioning system (GPS) location clusters (GLCs) is becoming increasingly popular in studies of carnivore ecology. While promising, this application of GPS technology is still poorly developed for most species. We applied this method to study predation and maternal behavior of the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) in the Dinaric Mountains. Low population densities, rugged terrain, dense vegetation, and administrative borders make studies of this endangered population using traditional methods and a limited budget very challenging. We used the geographic information system and linear mixed-effects models to understand the movement of lynx during the consumptionprocess and denning period and estimate lynx kill rates. A total of99 % of kills were found at GLCs longer than 30 h and with minimum two locations within 300 m. We confirmed 86 % of potential kills and all potentialdens that were searched for in the field. High success in predicting kill and den sites showed that the Eurasian lynx is a suitable species for application of the GLC analysis methods. Comparison of field-confirmed kills with model predictions showed the possibility for remote estimation of approximate kill rates in Eurasian lynx. Movements of the lynx were primarily affected by daytime period, time since the last kill/den translocation, lynx category, and their interactions. Based on the empirical data, we programmed simulations of lynx movements and elaborated recommendations for more efficient field procedures and study designs (GPS schedules) for future studies. We believe that our findings and approach will also benefit studies of other species with similar behavior