Evaluating ex situ conservation projects: Genetic structure of the captive population of the Arabian sand cat

Ex situ conservation plays an increasingly important role in the conservation of endangered species. Molecular genetic markers can be helpful to assess the status of captive breeding programmes. We present the first molecular genetic analysis of the captive population of the Arabian sand cat (Felis margarita harrisoni) using microsatellites. Our data indicates that the captive population of F. m. harrisoni comprises three genetic clusters, which are based on different founder lineages. Genetic diversity was relatively high, the effective population size even exceeded the number of founders. This was presumably caused by subsequently integrating unrelated, genetically diverse founders into the captive population and a careful management based on minimizing kinship. However, we detected an error in the studbook records, which might have led to incestuous matings and underlines the usefulness of molecular evaluations in captive breeding programmes for endangered species.     

圈养马麝发情交配后期的日活动格局

2001年1月,对46只圈养马麝进行了行为取样,记录了四种行为状态,站立及运动,摄食,反刍,静卧。区分性别和年龄组,比较各组在发情后期的活动格局。在发情末期,马麝呈现多高峰的日活动节律,清晨的活动高峰不明显,故而包含于持续时间极长（07：00－14：30时）的上午活动高峰,另具黄昏（16：30－18：00）时和午夜（21：00－00：30时）活动高峰。发情后期,马麝的活动节律主要受圈养条件,气温和生理状态的影响,摄食高峰的初次出现与喂饲时间有关,在喂锔前后发生反刍高峰,这是对饲料限量投放的一种适应;为适应冬季夜间的低气温,马麝在夜间趋向于静卧,而在较暖的昼间活动,以减少热量消耗,马麝雌体的发情交配状态影响其活动性,已交配受孕的雌体活动性降低。雄体的活动格局也受年龄和近期交配经历的影响。     

圈养小熊猫的昼夜活动节律

Daily activity rhytlms of three radio-collared captive red pandas were monitored individually at 15 minute intervals for 3 euntinuous days each month at Yele Nature Reserve, Xiangling Mountains, June- October 1995. Our data indicated that mean rate of activity [0.51 ) of captive red pandas was lower than that of wild red pandas. Three captive red pandas showed similar daily activity patterns, being least active during night and more active during daytime. Mean rate of activity during daylight (0.58)was higher than during nighttime (0.41). Daily mean durations of activity and rest were 12.21 hours and 11.79 hours, respectively. Active times of captive red pandas accounted for 50.6% of each 24 hours, of which 66.5% were recorded during daylight and 33.5% during night. Two active peaks appeared at07: 30-09: 15 and 17: 30- 19: 00. We recorded a mean of 2.17, 2.13 and 0.88 long, mid-length, and short resting bouts daily, which had mean durations of 3.47, 1.65 and 0.87 hour, respectively.Among these long rests, 46.1% occurred during daytime and 53.8% during nighttime.     

白尾梢虹雉国内首次人工饲养繁殖成功

探讨了白尾梢虹雉人工引种的环境,管理,育雏,雏鸟羽毛生长等过程。     

Erhaltungszuchten von Amphibien im deutschsprachigen Raum

The global amphibian crisis is demonstrated in the number of endangered species and the hazard criteria. The development of an international response to this crisis from the Amphibian Conservation Action Plan to the Amphibian Ark is described and set forth the breeding community in the German speaking region by zoological institutions, private amphibian keepers and a school. The regulations created by a community of many zoo organizations are explained. The procedure and the educational backgrounds of the Gerhart-Hauptmann-Secondary school as part of the breeding program are presented to the reader with the successful breeding of Neurergus kaiseri.     

缅甸蟒线粒体Cytb基因遗传多样性分析

为了探讨海南文昌种蟒养殖基地的种蟒的遗传多样性和个体来源,本研究对27条种蟒的细胞色素b基因的全序列进行了测定和分析。结果表明:缅甸蟒cytb基因全长1 111 bp,序列中A+T含量为58.0%,G+C含量为42.0%,单倍型多样性(Hd)为(0.755±0.053),核苷酸多样性(Pi)为(0.003 29±0.000 43),表明该种群遗传多样性较高。共检测出6条单倍型,单倍型间遗传距离最大为0.007,最小为0.001;与已知地理来源的个体构建系统发育树显示,该养殖种群来源两个母系世系。本研究结果为制定缅甸蟒合理圈养计划和科学放归提供理论基础。     

The use of redirection in a captive group of Japanese monkeys

The present study was chiefly focused on nonadult animals of a captive group of Japanese monkeys housed at the Rome Zoo. Over a five month-period, during 1 hr daily observations, threats, chases, physical assaults, submissions, and flights showed by each participant to agonistic interactions were recorded. Sex differences in the behavioral responses to received aggression, in the distribution of threats or attacks in dyadic interactions and in the second dyads of redirections, in the dominance relationship between actor and target in dyadic interactions and in the second dyads of redirections, emerged. The results stressed the short term functional implications of redirection behavior and suggested more long term functional implications to be effective in the female redirection behavior.     

Using historical captive stocks in conservation. The case of␣the␣lesser white-fronted goose

Many captive stocks of economically or otherwise valuable species were established before the decline of the wild population. These stocks are potentially valuable sources of genetic variability, but their taxonomic identity and actual value is often uncertain. We studied the genetics of captive stocks of the threatened lesser white-fronted goose Anser erythropus maintained in Sweden and elsewhere in Europe. Analyses of mtDNA and nuclear microsatellite markers revealed that 36% of the individuals had a hybrid ancestry. Because the parental species are closely related it is unlikely that our analyses detected all hybrid individuals in the material. Because no ancestral polymorphism or introgression was observed in samples of wild populations, it is likely that the observed hybridisation has occurred in captivity. As a consequence of founder effect, drift and hybridisation, captive stocks were genetically differentiated from the wild populations of the lesser white-fronted goose. The high level of genetic diversity in the captive stocks is explained at least partially by hybridisation. The present captive stocks of the lesser white-fronted goose are considered unsuitable for further reintroduction, or supplementation: hybridisation has involved three species, the number of hybrids is high, and all the investigated captive stocks are similarly affected. The results highlight the potential shortcomings of using captive-bred individuals in supplementation and reintroduction projects, when the captive stocks have not been pedigreed and bred according to conservation principles. Deceased 20 March 2004.     

Reproduction and development of the South American freshwater stingrays,Potamotrygon circularis and P. motoro

Synopsis Observations of reproductive features and body measurements were made on wild-caught, freshwater stingrays, Potamotrygon circularis and P. motoro, from the Amazon drainage of western Brazil and southern Colombia. Further observations were made in Detroit's Belle Isle Aquarium on a captive pair of P. motoro and their descendants, which constitute the first known captive breeding colony of potamotrygonids. The gross structure and function of female and male reproductive systems are described. There is no obvious difference between those of the two species. They are aplacentally viviparous, the young being nourished in advanced stages by uterine milk secreted by trophonemata. Size at onset and completion of sexual maturation, breeding season and behavior, gestation period, litter size and sex ratios are discussed. Up to 21 proportional measurements were made on several fetal and postnatal stages of both species. Several proportional changes occur in very early fetal life, but most body proportions undergo only minor changes from advanced fetal through adult stages. A growth curve is proposed for P. motoro based on observations of the captive colony.     

Computationally exact methods for stochastic periodic dynamics: Spatiotemporal dispersal and temporally forced transmission

The dynamics of many diseases and populations possess distinct recurring phases. For example, many species breed only during a subset of the year and the infection dynamics of many pathogens have transmission rates that vary with season. Here I investigate computational methods for studying transient and long-term behaviour of stochastic models which have periodic phases—several different potential techniques for studying long-term behaviour will be contrasted. I illustrate the results with two studies: The first is of a spatially realistic metapopulation model of malleefowl (Leipoa ocellata), a species which disperses only during a quarter of the year; this model is used to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of the particular methods presented. The second study is of a model for disease dynamics which incorporates seasonality in both the rate of within-population transmission and also in the rate of transmission effected via aerosol importation. This model has applications to studying disease invasion and persistence in captive-breeding populations. We demonstrate, via comparison to appropriately matched models with constant transmission rates and also no aerosol transmission, that seasonality and aerosol importation may alter control choices, with possibly an increase in the threshold population size for local control surveillance, transfer of importance to limiting aerosol transmission, and the use of temporally targetted surveillance. The methodology presented is the gold-standard for dealing with many phased processes in ecology and epidemiology, but its application is limited to systems of small size.