Genetic structure and dispersal in a small South African rodent. Is dispersal female-biased?
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- 作者：Jork Meyer ; Annette Kohnen ; Walter Durka ; Johannes Wö ; stemeyer ; Niels Blaum ; Eva Rossmanith ; Rol ; Br ; l
- 刊名：Mammalian Biology - Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde
- 出版年：2009
- 出版时间：November 2009
- 年：2009
- 卷：74
- 期：6
- 页码：478-487
- 全文大小：314 K
文摘
Dispersal greatly determines genetic structure of populations, although it is influenced by landscape heterogeneity, quality of the matrix, resource distribution and local population densities and dynamics. To get insights into some of those processes we analysed the genetic structure of the hairy-footed gerbil Gerbillurus paeba (Rodentia, Murinae, Gerbillinae) in the southern Kalahari (South Africa). Samples were taken from 20 populations covering an area of about 2200 km2. Genetic data were related to landscape characters and population dynamics. We used newly developed microsatellites and found at all loci some indication for the presence of null alleles. However, null alleles seem to have little influence on the general results of our analyses. Altogether we found even nearby populations of G. paeba to be significantly differentiated, although assignment tests revealed 24 % of individuals as immigrants. Genetic structure was independent of landscape heterogeneities at all spatial scales. Autocorrelation analyses (range 50–90 km) revealed significant genetic structure within populations on distances <3 km. We found some indication for female-biased dispersal. Our study suggests that dispersing individuals have little influence on the long-term genetic structure and that drift is the major cause of genetic diversity. The observed genetic pattern likely derives from strong population fluctuations of G. paeba. The landscape structure has little influence on the genetic differentiation between populations.