Galimberti A, Spinelli S, Bruno A, Mezzasalma V, De Mattia F, Cortis P, Labra M
ZooPlantLab, Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca, P.za Della Scienza 2, 20126, Milan, Italy.
FEM2-Ambiente s.r.l, P.za Della Scienza 2, 20126, Milan, Italy.
Conserv Biol. 2016 Aug;30(4):763-73. doi: 10.1111/cobi.12687. Epub 2016 Apr 19.
Frugivores are critical components of restoration programs because they are seed dispersers. Thus, knowledge about bird-plant trophic relationships is essential in the evaluation of the efficacy of restoration processes. Traditionally, the diet of frugivores is characterized by microscopically identifying plant residues in droppings, which is time-consuming, requires botanical knowledge, and cannot be used for fragments lacking detectable morphological characteristics (e.g., fragmented seeds and skins). We examined whether DNA barcoding can be used as a universal tool to rapidly characterize the diet of a frugivorous bird, Eurasian blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla). We used the DNA barcoding results to assess restoration efforts and monitor the diversity of potentially dispersed plants in a protected area in northern Italy. We collected 642 Eurasian Blackcap droppings at the restored site during the autumn migration over 3 years. Intact seeds and fragmented plant material were analyzed at 2 plastidial barcode loci (rbcL and trnH-psbA), and the resulting plant identifications were validated by comparison with a reference molecular data set of local flora. At least 17 plant species, including 7 of the 11 newly transplanted taxa, were found. Our results demonstrate the potential for DNA barcoding to be used to monitor the effectiveness of restoration plantings and to obtain information about fruit consumption and dispersal of invasive or unexpected plant species. Such an approach provides valuable information that could be used to study local plant biodiversity and to survey its evolution over time.
食果动物是恢复计划的关键组成部分，因为它们是种子传播者。因此，了解鸟类与植物的营养关系对于评估恢复过程的效果至关重要。传统上，食果动物的饮食特征是通过显微镜鉴定粪便中的植物残渣来确定，这既耗时，又需要植物学知识，而且对于缺乏可检测形态特征的碎片（如破碎的种子和果皮）无法使用。我们研究了DNA条形码是否可以作为一种通用工具，快速鉴定一种食果鸟类——欧亚褐头山雀（Sylvia atricapilla）的饮食。我们利用DNA条形码的结果来评估恢复工作，并监测意大利北部一个保护区内潜在传播植物的多样性。在三年的秋季迁徙期间，我们在恢复地点收集了642份欧亚褐头山雀的粪便。对完整的种子和破碎的植物材料在两个质体条形码位点（rbcL和trnH-psbA）进行分析，并通过与当地植物区系的参考分子数据集进行比较，验证所得的植物鉴定结果。我们发现了至少17种植物，其中包括11种新移植分类群中的7种。我们的结果表明，DNA条形码有潜力用于监测恢复种植的有效性，并获取有关入侵或意外植物物种的果实消耗和传播的信息。这种方法提供了有价值的信息，可用于研究当地植物生物多样性及其随时间的演变。
