Delineating genomic features for wild guanaco conservation
Abstract The South American fauna has endured challenges such as illegal hunting, cattle expansion, climate change, and landscape fragmentation. Despite ongoing conservation efforts that aim to address these issues, genetic diversity remains overlooked. We genotyped 126 Lama guanicoe individuals from an area of 2 million km2 in Patagonia and Cuyo using the 60K SNPs Axiom-Camelids, and we assessed population viability through genetic diversity, inbreeding, and population size. We then explored population connectivities through network analyses, genetic differentiation, and Bayesian approaches. Our findings reveal six genetic clusters: Cuyo, Somuncura, North Patagonia, Central Patagonia, South Patagonia, and Tierra del Fuego Island (TDFI). Cuyo and TDFI guanacos differed from others due to isolation-by-distance and geographical barriers, respectively. Cuyo exhibited the highest degree of allele conservation, but TDFI faced heightened vulnerability due to isolation and increased homozygosity. Sharp bottlenecks in Cuyo and North Patagonia coincided with the expansion of sheep farming, while bottlenecks in the other populations occurred during the Little Ice Age. North Patagonia acted as a probable contact zone, facilitating mixing of the Cuyo, Somuncura, and Central Patagonia populations. The Central and South Patagonian populations presented the highest gene flow. Thus, genomic advances help to define distinct conservation units (genetic stocks) to guide management practices and decisions.
Authors
- María Clara Álvarez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0183-2071)
- F. Di Rocco (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7756-390X)
- Daniela Verónica Alunni
- Melina Anello (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5849-2904)
- Luis Alberto Borrero (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8193-1573)
- Juan Bautista Belardi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7940-7062)
- Juan Ignacio Túnez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3931-0500)
- Pablo F. Petracci
- Sebastián Poljak (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7972-9352)
- Pablo Carmanchahi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2889-8516)
- Kathiravan Periasamy (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3518-5290)
- Leonardo Leggieri (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1511-7506)
- Diego M. Peralta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6947-439X)
- Juan G. Cárcamo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2595-4375)
- Sylvain Martin
- Celina Flores (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2238-1313)
- Agustina Massigoge (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9073-0303)
- Carlos E. Borghi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3726-6000)
- Leandro Marbán (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3570-1619)
- Rudolf Pichler
- Cristian A. Kaufmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3968-3676)
- María A. Gutiérrez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6331-3763)
- Juan Carlos Marín (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3508-393X)
- James C. DeMartini
Institutions
- International Atomic Energy Agency (AT)
- Natural History Museum (GB)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (AR)
- Austral University of Chile (CL)
- University of Bío-Bío (CL)
- National University of Tierra del Fuego (AR)
- Museo de Historia Natural Noel Kempff Mercado (BO)
- Centro Científico Tecnológico - San Juan (AR)
- Centro Científico Tecnológico - Bahía Blanca (AR)
- Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Celular (AR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Biological Journal of the Linnean Society
- Published
- 2024-11-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1093/biolinnean/blae087
- Citations
- 4
- Primary Topic
- Banana Cultivation and Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.40