Range‐Wide Genomic Analysis Reveals Regional and Meta‐Population Dynamics of Decline and Recovery in the Grey Seal

Wildlife populations globally have experienced widespread historical declines due to anthropogenic and environmental impacts, yet for some species, contemporary management and conservation programmes have enabled recent recovery. The impacts of decline and recovery on genomic diversity and, vice versa, the genetic factors that contribute to conservation success or failure are rich areas for inquiry, with implications for shaping how we manage species into the future. To comprehensively characterise these processes in natural systems requires range-wide sampling and international collaboration, particularly for species with wide dispersal capabilities, broad geographic distributions, and complex regional metapopulation dynamics. Here, we present the first range- and genome-wide population genomic analysis of grey seals based on 3812 nuclear SNPs genotyped in 188 samples from 17 localities. Our analyses support the existence of three main grey seal populations centred in the NW Atlantic, NE Atlantic and Baltic Sea, and point to the existence of previously unrecognised substructure within the NE Atlantic. We detected remarkably low levels of genetic diversity in the NW Atlantic population, and demographic analyses revealed a turbulent history of NE Atlantic and Baltic Sea grey seals, with bottlenecks in the Middle Ages and the 20th century due to hunting and habitat alterations. We found some localities deviated from isolation by distance patterns, likely reflecting wide-scale metapopulation dynamics associated with recolonisation and recovery in regions where they were historically extirpated. We identify at least six grey seal genetic populations and reveal marked genetic effects of past declines and recent recovery across the species' range.

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Publication Details

Journal
Molecular Ecology
Published
2025-06-19
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17824
Citations
1
Primary Topic
Marine Bivalve and Aquaculture Studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.11

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article

Range‐Wide Genomic Analysis Reveals Regional and Meta‐Population Dynamics of Decline and Recovery in the Grey Seal

Jonathan A. Runstadler, W. Don Bowen, Morten Tange Olsen, Bjørn Munro Jenssen et al.
1 citations
Molecular Ecology
Marine Bivalve and Aquaculture Studies
1.11
article

Range‐Wide Genomic Analysis Reveals Regional and Meta‐Population Dynamics of Decline and Recovery in the Grey Seal

Jonathan A. Runstadler, W. Don Bowen, Morten Tange Olsen, Bjørn Munro Jenssen, Mia Valtonen, Charlotte Bie Thøstesen, Wendy B. Puryear, Morgan L. McCarthy, Sandra M. Granquist, Anders Galatius, Jonas Teilmann, Debbie J. F. Russell, Kristina M. Cammen, Mervi Kunnasranta, Runé Dietz, Markus Ahola, Britt‐Marie Bäcklin, Simon Kjeldgaard
article en
1 citations

Abstract

Wildlife populations globally have experienced widespread historical declines due to anthropogenic and environmental impacts, yet for some species, contemporary management and conservation programmes have enabled recent recovery. The impacts of decline and recovery on genomic diversity and, vice versa, the genetic factors that contribute to conservation success or failure are rich areas for inquiry, with implications for shaping how we manage species into the future. To comprehensively characterise these processes in natural systems requires range-wide sampling and international collaboration, particularly for species with wide dispersal capabilities, broad geographic distributions, and complex regional metapopulation dynamics. Here, we present the first range- and genome-wide population genomic analysis of grey seals based on 3812 nuclear SNPs genotyped in 188 samples from 17 localities. Our analyses support the existence of three main grey seal populations centred in the NW Atlantic, NE Atlantic and Baltic Sea, and point to the existence of previously unrecognised substructure within the NE Atlantic. We detected remarkably low levels of genetic diversity in the NW Atlantic population, and demographic analyses revealed a turbulent history of NE Atlantic and Baltic Sea grey seals, with bottlenecks in the Middle Ages and the 20th century due to hunting and habitat alterations. We found some localities deviated from isolation by distance patterns, likely reflecting wide-scale metapopulation dynamics associated with recolonisation and recovery in regions where they were historically extirpated. We identify at least six grey seal genetic populations and reveal marked genetic effects of past declines and recent recovery across the species' range.

Molecular EcologyVol. 34(14)
Tufts University (US), University of Copenhagen (DK), Dalhousie University (CA), Turku University of Applied Sciences (FI), University of St Andrews (GB), University of Eastern Finland (FI), Aarhus University (DK), Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NO), Swedish Museum of Natural History (SE), Moesgaard Museum (DK), Marine and Freshwater Research Institute (IS), Icelandic Tourism Research Centre (IS), University of Maine (US)
American-Scandinavian Foundation, Stiftelsen för Miljöstrategisk Forskning, Velux Fonden, Natural Resources Wales, Innovationsfonden, University of St Andrews, Home Office, Academy of Finland, Ministry of Environment, Naturvårdsverket, National Institutes of Health, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Natural Environment Research Council, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, Northeast Fisheries Science Center
Life below water
Openalex Percentile: Top 23%
Marine Bivalve and Aquaculture Studies
1.11
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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