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The paradox of invasion: R eeves' muntjac deer invade the B ritish I sles from a limited number of founding females
Author(s) -
Freeman M. S.,
Beatty G. E.,
Dick J. T. A.,
Reid N.,
Provan J.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of zoology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.915
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1469-7998
pISSN - 0952-8369
DOI - 10.1111/jzo.12283
Subject(s) - biology , genetic diversity , propagule pressure , propagule , haplotype , ecology , range (aeronautics) , evolutionary biology , microsatellite , biological dispersal , zoology , genetics , genotype , demography , gene , allele , population , materials science , sociology , composite material
High levels of genetic diversity and high propagule pressure are favoured by conservation biologists as the basis for successful reintroductions and ensuring the persistence of populations. However, invasion ecologists recognize the ‘paradox of invasion’, as successful species introductions may often be characterized by limited numbers of individuals and associated genetic bottlenecks. In the present study, we used a combination of high‐resolution nuclear and mitochondrial genetic markers to investigate the invasion history of R eeves' muntjac deer in the B ritish I sles. This invasion has caused severe economic and ecological damage, with secondary spread currently a concern throughout E urope and potentially globally. Microsatellite analysis based on eight loci grouped all 176 introduced individuals studied from across the species' range in the UK into one genetic cluster, and seven mitochondrial D‐loop haplotypes were recovered, two of which were present at very low frequency and were related to more common haplotypes. Our results indicate that the entire invasion can be traced to a single founding event involving a low number of females. These findings highlight the fact that even small releases of species may, if ignored, result in irreversible and costly invasion, regardless of initial genetic diversity or continual genetic influx.