Background: The tiger population in Southwest Primorye is small and predominantly isolated from the main Sikhote-Alin population, which constitutes approximately 90% of the wild Amur tiger population. By 1996, this population declined to fewer than 10 individuals, but it has since grown and expanded into nearby habitats, now numbering over 50 individuals. Therefore, the regular genetic monitoring of this population is essential, as it has grown from a few founding members and remained geographically isolated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNon-invasive genetic approaches, particularly using fecal samples, are commonly used to study endangered and elusive species, as they are easy to collect with minimal permission and cause little disturbance to the subject population. However, such studies face limitations due to poor DNA yield, which affects the overall utilization of collected samples and increases data errors. Here, we evaluated the impact of sample age and collection season on the performance of DNA extracted from feces (spraints) of the Eurasian otter (), a semi-aquatic apex predator in South Korean freshwater ecosystems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSmall populations of the endangered species are more vulnerable to extinction and hence require periodic genetic monitoring to establish and revisit the conservation strategies. The Amur leopard is critically endangered with about 100 individuals in the wild. In this study, we developed a simple and cost-effective noninvasive genetic monitoring protocol for Amur leopards.
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