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Assessing the success of the first cheetah reintroduction in Malawi. ORYX 2022. [DOI: 10.1017/s0030605321000788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
In an effort to restore parts of their historical geographical range, and in recognition of their ability to restore ecosystem functioning and of the financial benefits they can provide through ecotourism, large carnivores have been reintroduced in many protected areas from which they were previously extirpated. Similar to dispersing animals, translocated individuals often undertake long-distance exploratory movements before establishing home ranges. Post-release monitoring of reintroduced carnivores is common, but the mechanisms of population establishment are rarely examined, limiting our understanding of reintroduction success. We monitored survival and post-release movements of seven cheetahs Acinonyx jubatus reintroduced to Liwonde National Park, Malawi, to evaluate early population establishment. Exploratory phases post-release lasted 29–174 days. Duration of pre-release holding periods in the boma had no significant effect on daily distance moved. Males travelled significantly farther and established home ranges later than females. All cheetahs showed release site fidelity and all females birthed their first litter within 4 months of release. Within 2 years of reintroduction, the newly established population consisted of 14 cheetahs, with demographic attributes similar to those recorded in the source populations. Based on individual settlement, survival and reproduction rates, we deemed this reintroduction successful in re-establishing a breeding population of cheetahs in Liwonde. Our findings suggest the drivers of settlement and population establishment for reintroduced cheetahs are complex, highlighting the importance of assessing and reporting post-release monitoring data.
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Weckworth JK, Davis BW, Roelke-Parker ME, Wilkes RP, Packer C, Eblate E, Schwartz MK, Mills LS. Identifying Candidate Genetic Markers of CDV Cross-Species Pathogenicity in African Lions. Pathogens 2020; 9:E872. [PMID: 33114123 PMCID: PMC7690837 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens9110872] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2020] [Revised: 10/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Canine distemper virus (CDV) is a multi-host pathogen with variable clinical outcomes of infection across and within species. We used whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to search for viral markers correlated with clinical distemper in African lions. To identify candidate markers, we first documented single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) differentiating CDV strains associated with different clinical outcomes in lions in East Africa. We then conducted evolutionary analyses on WGS from all global CDV lineages to identify loci subject to selection. SNPs that both differentiated East African strains and were under selection were mapped to a phylogenetic tree representing global CDV diversity to assess if candidate markers correlated with documented outbreaks of clinical distemper in lions (n = 3). Of 54 SNPs differentiating East African strains, ten were under positive or episodic diversifying selection and 20 occurred in the clinical strain despite strong purifying selection at those loci. Candidate markers were in functional domains of the RNP complex (n = 19), the matrix protein (n = 4), on CDV glycoproteins (n = 5), and on the V protein (n = 1). We found mutations at two loci in common between sequences from three CDV outbreaks of clinical distemper in African lions; one in the signaling lymphocytic activation molecule receptor (SLAM)-binding region of the hemagglutinin protein and another in the catalytic center of phosphodiester bond formation on the large polymerase protein. These results suggest convergent evolution at these sites may have a functional role in clinical distemper outbreaks in African lions and uncover potential novel barriers to pathogenicity in this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie K. Weckworth
- Wildlife Biology Program, Department of Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences, W. A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, USA;
- United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Genomics Center for Wildlife and Fish Conservation, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Missoula, MT 59801, USA
| | - Brian W. Davis
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine, College Station, TX 77843, USA;
| | - Melody E. Roelke-Parker
- Leidos Biomedical Research, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD 21702, USA;
| | - Rebecca P. Wilkes
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA;
| | - Craig Packer
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA;
| | - Ernest Eblate
- Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute, Arusha, Tanzania;
| | - Michael K. Schwartz
- Wildlife Biology Program, Department of Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences, W. A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, USA;
- United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Genomics Center for Wildlife and Fish Conservation, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Missoula, MT 59801, USA
| | - L. Scott Mills
- Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology Program, Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA;
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Elliot NB, Bett A, Chege M, Sankan K, Souza N, Kariuki L, Broekhuis F, Omondi P, Ngene S, Gopalaswamy AM. The importance of reliable monitoring methods for the management of small, isolated populations. CONSERVATION SCIENCE AND PRACTICE 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/csp2.217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas B. Elliot
- Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Department of ZoologyUniversity of Oxford, Recanati‐Kaplan Centre Tubney House, Abingdon Road Tubney Oxfordshire OX13 5QL UK
- Kenya Wildlife Trust P.O. Box 86‐00502 Karen Nairobi Kenya
| | - Alice Bett
- Kenya Wildlife Service Box 40241‐0100 Nairobi Kenya
| | - Monica Chege
- Kenya Wildlife Service Box 40241‐0100 Nairobi Kenya
| | - Kasaine Sankan
- Kenya Wildlife Trust P.O. Box 86‐00502 Karen Nairobi Kenya
| | - Nadia Souza
- Lion Guardians P.O. Box 15550‐00509, Langata Nairobi Kenya
| | | | - Femke Broekhuis
- Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Department of ZoologyUniversity of Oxford, Recanati‐Kaplan Centre Tubney House, Abingdon Road Tubney Oxfordshire OX13 5QL UK
| | | | | | - Arjun M. Gopalaswamy
- Statistics and Mathematics UnitIndian Statistical Institute—Bangalore Centre Bengaluru 560059 India
- Wildlife Conservation SocietyGlobal Conservation Programs 2300, Southern Boulevard Bronx New York 10460 USA
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