Family Associations in a Breeding Colony of Critically Endangered Hooded Vulture () in the Lowveld of South Africa.

Numbers of Critically Endangered Hooded Vultures ( Temminck 1823) are declining across their distribution. The range-edge population in South Africa is one of the smallest populations with only 100-200 mature individuals. In South Africa, Hooded Vultures nest solitarily in loose colonies (mean distance between nests 0.

Multiple introductions, polyploidy and mixed reproductive strategies are linked to genetic diversity and structure in the most widespread invasive plant across Southern Ocean archipelagos.

Biological invasions in remote areas that experience low human activity provide unique opportunities to elucidate processes responsible for invasion success. Here we study the most widespread invasive plant species across the isolated islands of the Southern Ocean, the annual bluegrass, Poa annua. To analyse geographical variation in genome size, genetic diversity and reproductive strategies, we sampled all major sub-Antarctic archipelagos in this region and generated microsatellite data for 470 individual plants representing 31 populations.

Mitogenome selection in the evolution of key ecological strategies in the ancient hexapod class Collembola.

A longstanding question in evolutionary biology is how natural selection and environmental pressures shape the mitochondrial genomic architectures of organisms. Mitochondria play a pivotal role in cellular respiration and aerobic metabolism, making their genomes functionally highly constrained. Evaluating selective pressures on mitochondrial genes can provide functional and ecological insights into the evolution of organisms.

Out of southern Africa: Origins and cryptic speciation in Chamaeleo, the most widespread chameleon genus.

Molecular phylogenetics and the application of species delimitation methods have proven useful in addressing limitations associated with morphology based taxonomy and have highlighted the inconsistencies in the current taxonomy for many groups. For example, the genus Chamaeleo, which comprises 14 species with large distributions across mainland Africa and parts of Eurasia, exhibits relatively minor phenotypic differentiation between species, leading to speculation regarding the presence of cryptic diversity in the genus. Therefore, the aims of the present study were to construct a robust and comprehensive phylogeny of the genus and highlight potential species-level cryptic diversity.

MORPHOLOGICAL AND MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF THE PLAGUE VECTOR XENOPSYLLA BRASILIENSIS.

Members of the flea family Pulicidae have been the focus of many studies due to their significance as diseases vectors of medical and veterinary importance and their cosmopolitan distribution. They often exhibit variation in morphological features that can make correct species identification and management challenging. This may also apply to Xenopsylla brasiliensis (Baker, 1904), an important plague vector.

Phylogeographic Patterns in a Semi-Lithophilous Burrowing Scorpion, , from South Africa.

Southern Africa has a diverse endemic scorpion fauna, but a paucity of information currently confounds conservation of the group. Phylogeographic approaches represent a useful tool to identify the patterns and processes which underpin scorpion diversity, but these studies are lacking for southern African species. Among southern African scorpions, the semi-lithophilous has strict habitat requirements, and a distribution historically subjected to profound environmental turnover.

Genomic divergence and differential gene expression between crustacean ecotypes across a marine thermal gradient.

Environmental gradients between marine biogeographical provinces separate distinct faunal communities. However, the absence of absolute dispersal barriers allows numerous species to occur on both sides of such boundaries. While the regional populations of such widespread species are often morphologically indistinguishable from each other, genetic evidence suggests that they represent unique ecotypes, and likely even cryptic species, that may be uniquely adapted to their local environment.

Isolation and characterization of species-specific microsatellite markers for blue and black wildebeest ( and ).

The bluewildebeest () is distributed throughout southern and east Africa while the black wildebeest () is endemic to South Africa and was driven to near extinction in the early 1900s due to hunting pressure and disease outbreaks. Extensive translocation of both species throughout South Africa is threatening the genetic integrity of blue and blackwilde beest. To effectively manage these species, genetic tools that can be used to detect hybrid individuals, identify genetically unique subpopulations and determine the levels of genetic diversity are required.

Quantitative evaluation of hybridization and the impact on biodiversity conservation.

Anthropogenic hybridization is an increasing conservation threat worldwide. In South Africa, recent hybridization is threatening numerous ungulate taxa. For example, the genetic integrity of the near-threatened bontebok () is threatened by hybridization with the more common blesbok ().

Comparison of mitochondrial genome sequences of pangolins (Mammalia, Pholidota).

The complete mitochondrial genome was sequenced for three species of pangolins, Manis javanica, Phataginus tricuspis, and Smutsia temminckii, and comparisons were made with two other species, Manis pentadactyla and Phataginus tetradactyla. The genome of Manidae contains the 37 genes found in a typical mammalian genome, and the structure of the control region is highly conserved among species. In Manis, the overall base composition differs from that found in African genera.

Long-distance dispersal maximizes evolutionary potential during rapid geographic range expansion.

Conventional wisdom predicts that sequential founder events will cause genetic diversity to erode in species with expanding geographic ranges, limiting evolutionary potential at the range margin. Here, we show that invasive European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) in South Africa preserve genetic diversity during range expansion, possibly as a result of frequent long-distance dispersal events. We further show that unfavourable environmental conditions trigger enhanced dispersal, as indicated by signatures of selection detected across the expanding range.

Biogeography and host-related factors trump parasite life history: limited congruence among the genetic structures of specific ectoparasitic lice and their rodent hosts.

Parasites and hosts interact across both micro- and macroevolutionary scales where congruence among their phylogeographic and phylogenetic structures may be observed. Within southern Africa, the four-striped mouse genus, Rhabdomys, is parasitized by the ectoparasitic sucking louse, Polyplax arvicanthis. Molecular data recently suggested the presence of two cryptic species within P.

Pan-African genetic structure in the African buffalo (Syncerus caffer): investigating intraspecific divergence.

The African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) exhibits extreme morphological variability, which has led to controversies about the validity and taxonomic status of the various recognized subspecies. The present study aims to clarify these by inferring the pan-African spatial distribution of genetic diversity, using a comprehensive set of mitochondrial D-loop sequences from across the entire range of the species. All analyses converged on the existence of two distinct lineages, corresponding to a group encompassing West and Central African populations and a group encompassing East and Southern African populations.

Population genetics of Ceratitis capitata in South Africa: implications for dispersal and pest management.

The invasive Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly), Ceratitis capitata, is one of the major agricultural and economical pests globally. Understanding invasion risk and mitigation of medfly in agricultural landscapes requires knowledge of its population structure and dispersal patterns. Here, estimates of dispersal ability are provided in medfly from South Africa at three spatial scales using molecular approaches.

Biome specificity of distinct genetic lineages within the four-striped mouse Rhabdomys pumilio (Rodentia: Muridae) from southern Africa with implications for taxonomy.

Within southern Africa, a link between past climatic changes and faunal diversification has been hypothesized for a diversity of taxa. To test the hypothesis that evolutionary divergences may be correlated to vegetation changes (induced by changes in climate), we selected the widely distributed four-striped mouse, Rhabdomys, as a model. Two species are currently recognized, the mesic-adapted R.

Spatial sorting drives morphological variation in the invasive bird, Acridotheris tristis.

The speed of range expansion in many invasive species is often accelerating because individuals with stronger dispersal abilities are more likely to be found at the range front. This 'spatial sorting' of strong dispersers will drive the acceleration of range expansion. In this study, we test whether the process of spatial sorting is at work in an invasive bird population (Common myna, Acridotheris tristis) in South Africa.

Plant dispersal in the sub-Antarctic inferred from anisotropic genetic structure.

Climatic conditions and landscape features often strongly affect species' local distribution patterns, dispersal, reproduction and survival and may therefore have considerable impacts on species' fine-scale spatial genetic structure (SGS). In this study, we demonstrate the efficacy of combining fine-scale SGS analyses with isotropic and anisotropic spatial autocorrelation techniques to infer the impact of wind patterns on plant dispersal processes. We genotyped 1304 Azorella selago (Apiaceae) specimens, a wind-pollinated and wind-dispersed plant, from four populations distributed across sub-Antarctic Marion Island.

Cryptic spatial aggregation of the cushion plant Azorella selago (Apiaceae) revealed by a multilocus molecular approach suggests frequent intraspecific facilitation under sub-Antarctic conditions.

Premise Of The Study: In abiotically severe habitats, intraspecific aggregations can increase species' fitness by ameliorating stressful environmental factors. However, the difficulty of identifying individual plants in some growth forms makes the measurements of intraspecific aggregation, and therefore the assessment of intraspecific facilitation, problematic. In this study, we examined the genotype composition within cushions of Azorella selago, a sub-Antarctic cushion plant, to investigate the potential extent of intraspecific facilitation.

Permanent Genetic Resources added to Molecular Ecology Resources Database 1 August 2009-30 September 2009.

This article documents the addition of 238 microsatellite marker loci and 72 pairs of Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) sequencing primers to the Molecular Ecology Resources Database. Loci were developed for the following species: Adelges tsugae, Artemisia tridentata, Astroides calycularis, Azorella selago, Botryllus schlosseri, Botrylloides violaceus, Cardiocrinum cordatum var. glehnii, Campylopterus curvipennis, Colocasia esculenta, Cynomys ludovicianus, Cynomys leucurus, Cynomys gunnisoni, Epinephelus coioides, Eunicella singularis, Gammarus pulex, Homoeosoma nebulella, Hyla squirella, Lateolabrax japonicus, Mastomys erythroleucus, Pararge aegeria, Pardosa sierra, Phoenicopterus ruber ruber and Silene latifolia.

Directional evolution of the slope of the metabolic rate-temperature relationship is correlated with climate.

Abstract The evolution of metabolic rate-temperature (MR-T) reaction norms is of fundamental importance to physiological ecology. Metabolic cold adaptation (MCA) predicts that populations or species from cooler environments will have either a higher metabolic rate at a common temperature or steeper MR-T relationships, indicating greater sensitivity of respiratory metabolism to temperature. Support for MCA has been found in some insect species by comparing species or populations differing in latitude.

A molecular supermatrix of the rabbits and hares (Leporidae) allows for the identification of five intercontinental exchanges during the Miocene.

The hares and rabbits belonging to the family Leporidae have a nearly worldwide distribution and approximately 72% of the genera have geographically restricted distributions. Despite several attempts using morphological, cytogenetic, and mitochondrial DNA evidence, a robust phylogeny for the Leporidae remains elusive. To provide phylogenetic resolution within this group, a molecular supermatrix was constructed for 27 taxa representing all 11 leporid genera.