| 1. |
- Bertola, Laura D., et al.
(författare)
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A pragmatic approach for integrating molecular tools into biodiversity conservation
- 2024
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Ingår i: Conservation science and practice. - 2578-4854. ; 6:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Molecular tools are increasingly applied for assessing and monitoring biodiversity and informing conservation action. While recent developments in genetic and genomic methods provide greater sensitivity in analysis and the capacity to address new questions, they are not equally available to all practitioners: There is considerable bias across institutions and countries in access to technologies, funding, and training. Consequently, in many cases, more accessible traditional genetic data (e.g., microsatellites) are still utilized for making conservation decisions. Conservation approaches need to be pragmatic by tackling clearly defined management questions and using the most appropriate methods available, while maximizing the use of limited resources. Here we present some key questions to consider when applying the molecular toolbox for accessible and actionable conservation management. Finally, we highlight a number of important steps to be addressed in a collaborative way, which can facilitate the broad integration of molecular data into conservation. Molecular tools are increasingly applied in conservation management; however, they are not equally available to all practitioners. We here provide key questions when establishing a conservation genetic study and highlight important steps which need to be addressed when these tools are globally applied.image
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| 2. |
- Nylinder, Stephan, 1975-, et al.
(författare)
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On the Biogeography of Centipeda: A Species Tree Diffusion Approach
- 2014
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Ingår i: Systematic Biology. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1063-5157 .- 1076-836X. ; :63, s. 178-191
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Reconstructing the biogeographic history of groups present in continuous arid landscapes is challenging dueto the difficulties in defining discrete areas for analyses, and even more so when species largely overlap both in terms ofgeography and habitat preference. In this study, we use a novel approach to estimate ancestral areas for the small plantgenus Centipeda. We apply continuous diffusion of geography by a relaxed random walk where each species is sampledfrom its extant distribution on an empirical distribution of time-calibrated species-trees. Using a distribution of previouslypublished substitution rates of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) for Asteraceae, we show how the evolution of Centipedacorrelates with the temporal increase of aridity in the arid zone since the Pliocene. Geographic estimates of ancestral speciesshow a consistent pattern of speciation of early lineages in the Lake Eyre region, with a division in more northerly andsoutherly groups since ∼840 ka. Summarizing the geographic slices of species-trees at the time of the latest speciation event(∼20 ka), indicates no presence of the genus in Australia west of the combined desert belt of the Nullabor Plain, the GreatVictoria Desert, the Gibson Desert, and the Great Sandy Desert, or beyond the main continental shelf of Australia. Theresult indicates all western occurrences of the genus to be a result of recent dispersal rather than ancient vicariance. Thisstudy contributes to our understanding of the spatiotemporal processes shaping the flora of the arid zone, and offers asignificant improvement in inference of ancestral areas for any organismal group distributed where it remains difficult todescribe geography in terms of discrete areas.
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| 3. |
- Hosegood, Jane, et al.
(författare)
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Phylogenomics and species delimitation for effective conservation of manta and devil rays
- 2020
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Ingår i: Molecular Ecology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0962-1083 .- 1365-294X. ; 29:24, s. 4783-4796
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Practical biodiversity conservation relies on delineation of biologically meaningful units. Manta and devil rays (Mobulidae) are threatened worldwide, yet morphological similarities and a succession of recent taxonomic changes impede the development of an effective conservation strategy. Here, we generate genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data from a geographically and taxonomically representative set of manta and devil ray samples to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships and evaluate species boundaries under the general lineage concept. We show that nominal species units supported by alternative data sources constitute independently evolving lineages, and find robust evidence for a putative new species of manta ray in the Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, we uncover substantial incomplete lineage sorting indicating that rapid speciation together with standing variation in ancestral populations has driven phylogenetic uncertainty within Mobulidae. Finally, we detect cryptic diversity in geographically distinct populations, demonstrating that management below the species level may be warranted in certain species. Overall, our study provides a framework for molecular genetic species delimitation that is relevant to wide-ranging taxa of conservation concern, and highlights the potential for genomic data to support effective management, conservation and law enforcement strategies.
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| 4. |
- Treasure, Anne M., et al.
(författare)
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Marine Mammals Exploring the Oceans Pole to Pole A Review of the MEOP Consortium
- 2017
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Ingår i: Oceanography. - : The Oceanography Society. - 1042-8275. ; 30:2, s. 132-138
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Polar oceans are poorly monitored despite the important role they play in regulating Earth's climate system. Marine mammals equipped with biologging devices are now being used to fill the data gaps in these logistically difficult to sample regions. Since 2002, instrumented animals have been generating exceptionally large data sets of oceanographic CTD casts (>500,000 profiles), which are now freely available to the scientific community through the MEOP data portal (http://meop.net). MEOP (Marine Mammals Exploring the Oceans Pole to Pole) is a consortium of international researchers dedicated to sharing animal-derived data and knowledge about the polar oceans. Collectively, MEOP demonstrates the power and cost-effectiveness of using marine mammals as data-collection platforms that can dramatically improve the ocean observing system for biological and physical oceanographers. Here, we review the MEOP program and database to bring it to the attention of the international community.
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