Insights from the rescue and breeding management of Cuvier's gazelle () through whole-genome sequencing.

Captive breeding programmes represent the most intensive type of ex situ population management for threatened species. One example is the Cuvier's gazelle programme that started in 1975 with only four founding individuals, and after more than four decades of management in captivity, a reintroduction effort was undertaken in Tunisia in 2016, to establish a population in an area historically included within its range. Here, we aim to determine the genetic consequences of this reintroduction event by assessing the genetic diversity of the founder stock as well as of their descendants.

Habitat loss on the breeding grounds is a major contributor to population declines in a long-distance migratory songbird.

Many migratory species are declining and for most, the proximate causes of their declines remain unknown. For many long-distance Neotropical migratory songbirds, it is assumed that habitat loss on breeding or non-breeding grounds is a primary driver of population declines. We integrated data collected from tracking technology, community science and remote sensing data to quantify migratory connectivity (MC), population trends and habitat loss.

Opening the door to greater phylogeographic inference in Southeast Asia: Comparative genomic study of five codistributed rainforest bird species using target capture and historical DNA.

Indochina and Sundaland are biologically diverse, interconnected regions of Southeast Asia with complex geographic histories. Few studies have examined phylogeography of bird species that span the two regions because of inadequate population sampling. To determine how geographic barriers/events and disparate dispersal potential have influenced the population structure, gene flow, and demographics of species that occupy the entire area, we studied five largely codistributed rainforest bird species: , , , , and .

Rainfall and habitat interact to affect the condition of a wintering migratory songbird in The Bahamas.

On the subtropical and tropical wintering grounds of migratory birds, variation in moisture levels and habitat can influence the availability of food resources and subsequently impact overwintering birds. Using stable carbon isotopes in blood samples as a measure of moisture, we assessed the interactive effects of rainfall, vegetation, and moisture on the demographics and condition of Prairie Warblers () wintering in The Bahamas. Carbon isotopes in Prairie Warbler blood were more depleted in taller, wetter habitats; we additionally detected novel temporal effects of rainfall on isotope values.

Breeding latitude predicts timing but not rate of spring migration in a widespread migratory bird in South America.

Identifying the processes that determine avian migratory strategies in different environmental contexts is imperative to understanding the constraints to survival and reproduction faced by migratory birds across the planet.We compared the spring migration strategies of Fork-tailed Flycatchers () that breed at south-temperate latitudes (i.e.

North-facing slopes and elevation shape asymmetric genetic structure in the range-restricted salamander .

Species with narrow environmental tolerances are often distributed within fragmented patches of suitable habitat, and dispersal among these subpopulations can be difficult to directly observe. Genetic data can help quantify gene flow between localities, which is especially important for vulnerable species with a disjunct range. The Shenandoah salamander () is a federally endangered species known only from three mountaintops in Virginia, USA.

Measures of effective population size in sea otters reveal special considerations for wide-ranging species.

Conservation genetic techniques and considerations of the evolutionary potential of a species are increasingly being applied to species conservation. For example, effective population size ( ) estimates are useful for determining the conservation status of species, yet accurate estimates of current remain difficult to obtain. The effective population size can contribute to setting federal delisting criteria, as was done for the southern sea otter ().

Macrobenthic fauna from an upwelling coastal area of Peru (Warm Temperate South-eastern Pacific province -Humboldtian ecoregion).

Background: A total of 162 species and subspecies of marine macroinvertebrates were recorded in the submerged soft and hard substrates around the PERU LNG marine terminal and surrounding area, in the central coast of Peru, 167 km south of Lima, Peru. The collection of specimens was carried out from June 2011 to June 2015 as part of the research studies conducted by the Biodiversity Monitoring and Assessment Program (BMAP) around the marine terminal. The area is part of the Humboldt Current Large Marine Ecosystem, one of the most important upwelling systems in the world.

Conditions on the Mexican moulting grounds influence feather colour and carotenoids in Bullock's orioles ().

Carotenoid-based plumage coloration plays a critical role for both inter- and intrasexual communication. Habitat and diet during molt can have important consequences for the development of the ornamental signals used in these contexts. When molt occurs away from the breeding grounds (e.

Climate and density influence annual survival and movement in a migratory songbird.

Assessing the drivers of survival across the annual cycle is important for understanding when and how population limitation occurs in migratory animals. Density-dependent population regulation can occur during breeding and nonbreeding periods, and large-scale climate cycles can also affect survival throughout the annual cycle via their effects on local weather and vegetation productivity. Most studies of survival use mark-recapture techniques to estimate apparent survival, but true survival rates remain obscured due to unknown rates of permanent emigration.