Maternal genetic variation in the northeastern Hungarian fallow deer (Dama dama) population

The 10,000-year biocultural history of fallow deer and its implications for conservation policy

Over the last 10,000 y, humans have manipulated fallow deer populations with varying outcomes. Persian fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica) are now endangered. European fallow deer (Dama dama) are globally widespread and are simultaneously considered wild, domestic, endangered, invasive and are even the national animal of Barbuda and Antigua. Despite their close association with people, there is no consensus regarding their natural ranges or the timing and circumstances of their human-mediated translocations and extirpations. Our mitochondrial analyses of modern and archaeological specimens revealed two distinct clades of European fallow deer present in Anatolia and the Balkans. Zooarchaeological evidence suggests these regions were their sole glacial refugia. By combining biomolecular analyses with archaeological and textual evidence, we chart the declining distribution of Persian fallow deer and demonstrate that humans repeatedly translocated European fallow deer, sourced from the most geographically distant populations. Deer taken to Neolithic Chios and Rhodes derived not from nearby Anatolia, but from the Balkans. Though fallow deer were translocated throughout the Mediterranean as part of their association with the Greco-Roman goddesses Artemis and Diana, deer taken to Roman Mallorca were not locally available Dama dama, but Dama mesopotamica. Romans also initially introduced fallow deer to Northern Europe but the species became extinct and was reintroduced in the medieval period, this time from Anatolia. European colonial powers then transported deer populations across the globe. The biocultural histories of fallow deer challenge preconceptions about the divisions between wild and domestic species and provide information that should underpin modern management strategies.

A Selection of 14 Tetrameric Microsatellite Markers for Genetic Investigations in Fallow Deer (Dama dama)

The fallow deer (Dama dama) represents significant game management value globally, and human activities are significantly impacting the species. Besides the positive effects, these activities can threaten its existence, health, and value. The aim of the authors was to develop a tetranucleotide microsatellite panel that could be clearly interpreted and used for genetic testing of fallow deer. Such a panel did not exist until now and could be particularly useful in the field of conservation genetics and forensics. A total of 99 tetrameric microsatellites, originally designed for related deer species, were tested on 20 fallow deer individuals from five Hungarian sampling areas. Original and newly designed primers were used to amplify the microsatellite regions using previously published or optimized PCR protocols. The lengths and sequences of specific amplicons were detected using capillary electrophoresis, and the rate of polymorphism was determined. Altogether, 80 markers provided PCR products of adequate quality and quantity. Among them, 15 markers proved to be polymorphic (2-5 alleles/locus), and 14 tetrameric markers were selected for further analysis. Statistical calculations showed that the selected polymorphic microsatellites can potentially enable key individualization in many areas of wildlife and population genetics, thus protecting the species.

Assessing the origin, genetic structure and demographic history of the common pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) in the introduced European range

The common pheasant, a game species widely introduced throughout the world, can be considered as an ideal model to study the effects of introduction events on local adaptations, biogeographic patterns, and genetic divergence processes. We aimed to assess the origin, spatial patterns of genetic variation, and demographic history of the introduced populations in the contact zone of Central and Southeast Europe, using mitochondrial DNA control region sequences and microsatellite loci. Both types of molecular markers indicated relatively low to moderate levels of genetic variation. The mtDNA analyses revealed that common pheasants across the study area are divided into two distinct clades: B (mongolicus group) and F (colchicus group). Analyses of the microsatellite data consistently suggested a differentiation between Hungary and Serbia, with the pheasant population in Hungary being much more genetically homogeneous, while that of Serbia has much more genetic mixture and admixture. This cryptic differentiation was not detected using a non-spatial Bayesian clustering model. The analyses also provided strong evidence for a recent population expansion. This fundamental information is essential for adequate and effective conservation management of populations of a game species of great economic and ecological importance in the studied geographical region.