Extinctions, genetic erosion and conservation options for the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis)

Yoshan Moodley; Isa-Rita M. Russo; Desiré L. Dalton; Antoinette Kotzé; Shadrack Muya; Patricia Haubensak; Boglárka Bálint; Gopi K. Munimanda; Caroline Deimel; Andrea Setzer; Kara Dicks; Barbara Herzig-Straschil; Daniela C. Kalthoff; Hans Redlef Siegismund; Jan Robovský; Paul O'Donoghue; Michael W. Bruford

doi:10.1038/srep41417

Extinctions, genetic erosion and conservation options for the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis)

Yoshan Moodley, Isa-Rita M. Russo, Desiré L. Dalton, Antoinette Kotzé, Shadrack Muya, Patricia Haubensak, Boglárka Bálint, Gopi K. Munimanda, Caroline Deimel, Andrea Setzer, Kara Dicks, Barbara Herzig-Straschil, Daniela C. Kalthoff, Hans Redlef Siegismund, Jan Robovský, Paul O'Donoghue, Michael W. Bruford

Computational and RNA Biology

25 Citations (Scopus)

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Abstract

The black rhinoceros is again on the verge of extinction due to unsustainable poaching in its native range. Despite a wide historic distribution, the black rhinoceros was traditionally thought of as depauperate in genetic variation, and with very little known about its evolutionary history. This knowledge gap has hampered conservation efforts because hunting has dramatically reduced the species' once continuous distribution, leaving five surviving gene pools of unknown genetic affinity. Here we examined the range-wide genetic structure of historic and modern populations using the largest and most geographically representative sample of black rhinoceroses ever assembled. Using both mitochondrial and nuclear datasets, we described a staggering loss of 69% of the species' mitochondrial genetic variation, including the most ancestral lineages that are now absent from modern populations. Genetically unique populations in countries such as Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Mozambique, Malawi and Angola no longer exist. We found that the historic range of the West African subspecies (D. b. longipes), declared extinct in 2011, extends into southern Kenya, where a handful of individuals survive in the Masai Mara. We also identify conservation units that will help maintain evolutionary potential. Our results suggest a complete re-evaluation of current conservation management paradigms for the black rhinoceros.

Original language	English
Article number	41417
Journal	Scientific Reports
Volume	7
Number of pages	16
ISSN	2045-2322
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/srep41417
Publication status	Published - 8 Feb 2017

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Moodley, Y., Russo, I-R. M., Dalton, D. L., Kotzé, A., Muya, S., Haubensak, P., Bálint, B., Munimanda, G. K., Deimel, C., Setzer, A., Dicks, K., Herzig-Straschil, B., Kalthoff, D. C., Siegismund, H. R., Robovský, J., O'Donoghue, P., & Bruford, M. W. (2017). Extinctions, genetic erosion and conservation options for the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis). Scientific Reports, 7, [41417]. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep41417

Moodley, Y, Russo, I-RM, Dalton, DL, Kotzé, A, Muya, S, Haubensak, P, Bálint, B, Munimanda, GK, Deimel, C, Setzer, A, Dicks, K, Herzig-Straschil, B, Kalthoff, DC, Siegismund, HR, Robovský, J, O'Donoghue, P & Bruford, MW 2017, 'Extinctions, genetic erosion and conservation options for the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis)', Scientific Reports, vol. 7, 41417. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep41417

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abstract = "The black rhinoceros is again on the verge of extinction due to unsustainable poaching in its native range. Despite a wide historic distribution, the black rhinoceros was traditionally thought of as depauperate in genetic variation, and with very little known about its evolutionary history. This knowledge gap has hampered conservation efforts because hunting has dramatically reduced the species' once continuous distribution, leaving five surviving gene pools of unknown genetic affinity. Here we examined the range-wide genetic structure of historic and modern populations using the largest and most geographically representative sample of black rhinoceroses ever assembled. Using both mitochondrial and nuclear datasets, we described a staggering loss of 69% of the species' mitochondrial genetic variation, including the most ancestral lineages that are now absent from modern populations. Genetically unique populations in countries such as Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Mozambique, Malawi and Angola no longer exist. We found that the historic range of the West African subspecies (D. b. longipes), declared extinct in 2011, extends into southern Kenya, where a handful of individuals survive in the Masai Mara. We also identify conservation units that will help maintain evolutionary potential. Our results suggest a complete re-evaluation of current conservation management paradigms for the black rhinoceros.",

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AU - Kalthoff, Daniela C.

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AB - The black rhinoceros is again on the verge of extinction due to unsustainable poaching in its native range. Despite a wide historic distribution, the black rhinoceros was traditionally thought of as depauperate in genetic variation, and with very little known about its evolutionary history. This knowledge gap has hampered conservation efforts because hunting has dramatically reduced the species' once continuous distribution, leaving five surviving gene pools of unknown genetic affinity. Here we examined the range-wide genetic structure of historic and modern populations using the largest and most geographically representative sample of black rhinoceroses ever assembled. Using both mitochondrial and nuclear datasets, we described a staggering loss of 69% of the species' mitochondrial genetic variation, including the most ancestral lineages that are now absent from modern populations. Genetically unique populations in countries such as Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Mozambique, Malawi and Angola no longer exist. We found that the historic range of the West African subspecies (D. b. longipes), declared extinct in 2011, extends into southern Kenya, where a handful of individuals survive in the Masai Mara. We also identify conservation units that will help maintain evolutionary potential. Our results suggest a complete re-evaluation of current conservation management paradigms for the black rhinoceros.

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Extinctions, genetic erosion and conservation options for the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis)

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