Crossing the Red Sea: phylogeography of the hamadryas baboon, Papio hamadryas hamadryas

International audienceThe hamadryas baboon (Papio hamadryas hamadryas) is found both in East Africa and western Arabia and is the only free-ranging nonhuman primate in Arabia. It has been hypothesized that hamadryas baboons colonized Arabia in the recent past and were possibly even transported there by humans. We investigated the phylogeography of hamadryas baboons by sequencing a portion of the control region of mtDNA in 107 baboons from four Saudi Arabian populations and combing these data with published data from Eritrean (African) P. h. hamadryas. Analysis grouped sequences into three distinct clades, with clade 1 found only in Arabia, clade 3 found only in Africa, but clade 2 found in both Arabian and African P. h. hamadryas and also in the olive baboon, P. h. anubis. Patterns of variation within Arabia are neither compatible with the recent colonization of Arabia, implying that baboons were not transported there by humans, nor with a northerly route of colonization of Arabia. We propose that hamadryas baboons reached Arabia via land bridges that have formed periodically during glacial maxima at the straits of Bab el Mandab in the southern Red Sea. We suggest that the genetic differentiation of Arabian from African populations suggests that Arabian populations have a higher conservation status than recognized previously

Long-Term Mortality Monitoring of Captive Sand Gazelles (Gazella Marica): Assessment and Recommendation

The major objective of captive breeding programs for threatened wildlife species is the production of animals for reintroduction and to maintain self-sustaining populations in captivity. One strategy to improve reintroduction success as a conservation tool, is to produce enough animals that have good prospects for survival in the wild. It is therefore imperative to increase the number of potential recruits by reducing mortalities within the captive population. This goal can be best achieved by implementing a good animal health and welfare management. Causes of mortality in captive sand gazelles (Gazella marica) held at King Khalid Wildlife Research Center (KKWRC) in Saudi Arabia were monitored from 1988 to 2012. For this purpose, the pathology and necropsy records of 1,938 mortalities recorded at KKWRC were reviewed and summarized. The largest number of deaths were due to trauma (n = 744, 36.1%), whereby, 291 cases were self-inflicted (15.0%), 210 were caused by predators (10.8%), and 243 cases could be attributed to mate aggression (12.5%). Malnutrition (n = 108, 5.6%) and birth-related causes, such as maternal neglect (n = 165, 8.5%), dystocia (n = 44, 2.3%) and stillbirth (n = 95, 4.9%) accounted for another 21.3% of all mortalities. Among the infectious diseases, respiratory infection was the major cause of mortality, accounting for 159 cases (8.2%) of recorded deaths. Respiratory infections were most prevalent during spring (March - May) suggesting seasonal or climatic effects. Other clinical causes of death included gastro-intestinal diseases (n = 31, 1.6%) and general infections (n = 146, 7.5%), such as that with Pasteurella multocida. Euthanasia due to disease management (n=74, 3.8%) such as Brucella melitensis and Mycobacterium bovis eradication were also important causes of mortality. The study discussed the significance of these findings to improve the captive management of sand gazelles in captivity and reports in detail on the first Brucella melitensis and Pasteurella multicida cases in this threatened desert ungulate

A Time Purified Separated Antiproton Beam At The AGS

Physic

Revisiting the radiation of Gazella arabica on the Arabian Peninsula and testing the suitability of captive breeding stock for reintroduction, using mitochondrial and nuclear markers

Today, the Arabian gazelle (G. arabica) occurs only in small, scattered populations on the Arabian Peninsula and is classified as ‘vulnerable’, due to intensive hunting and competition with livestock. The taxonomy of this threatened species is still under debate, hampering conservation efforts while ex-situ breeding programs could be an appropriate conservation measure to prevent the species from going extinct. In our study, we attempted to elucidate the radiation of G. arabica on the Arabian Peninsula, and to ask whether the population genetic structure allows to distinguish between discrete conservation units. We used mitochondrial markers, microsatellite markers, and three intron markers to identify conservation units, to match them with genotypes found in the captive breeding stock held in Saudi Arabia, and to ensure that genotype diversity of potential founder individuals corresponds to that prevailing at targeted reintroduction sites. The sequence divergence was low among nuclear and mitochondrial markers, with gazelles originating from the north of the Arabian Peninsula showing the largest diversity, while south-western and eastern populations showed a decreased diversity. A haplotype network based on the relatively heterogeneous cytochrome b gene found no signs of a prolonged separate evolutionary history of any investigated mainland population, suggesting limitations of gene-flow after the colonization of the Arabian Peninsula leading to a founder effect-like distribution of mitochondrial haplotypes. The ex-situ breeding population held in Saudi Arabia showed a good haplotype diversity, underlining its general suitability for reintroductions. However, it is recommended that genetic data of founders should be assessed prior to future reintroduction