Ambarlı Hüseyin, Mengüllüoğlu Deniz, Fickel Jörns, Förster Daniel W
Department of Wildlife Ecology and Management, Düzce Unviersity, Düzce, Turkey.
Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany.
PeerJ. 2018 Sep 21;6:e5660. doi: 10.7717/peerj.5660. eCollection 2018.
Genetic studies of the Eurasian brown bear () have so far focused on populations from Europe and North America, although the largest distribution area of brown bears is in Asia. In this study, we reveal population genetic parameters for the brown bear population inhabiting the Grand Kaçkar Mountains (GKM) in the north east of Turkey, western Lesser Caucasus. Using both hair ( = 147) and tissue samples ( = 7) collected between 2008 and 2014, we found substantial levels of genetic variation (10 microsatellite loci). Bear samples (hair) taken from rubbing trees worked better for genotyping than those from power poles, regardless of the year collected. Genotyping also revealed that bears moved between habitat patches, despite ongoing massive habitat alterations and the creation of large water reservoirs. This population has the potential to serve as a genetic reserve for future reintroductions in the Middle East. Due to the importance of the GKM population for on-going and future conservation actions, the impacts of habitat alterations in the region ought to be minimized; e.g., by establishing green bridges or corridors over reservoirs and major roads to maintain habitat connectivity and gene flow among populations in the Lesser Caucasus.
欧亚棕熊（）的遗传研究目前主要集中在欧洲和北美种群，尽管棕熊最大的分布区域在亚洲。在本研究中，我们揭示了土耳其东北部小高加索山脉西部大卡卡尔山脉（GKM）棕熊种群的群体遗传参数。利用2008年至2014年间收集的毛发样本（n = 147）和组织样本（n = 7），我们发现了较高水平的遗传变异（10个微卫星位点）。无论采集年份如何，从擦树采集的熊样本（毛发）比从电线杆采集的样本在基因分型方面效果更好。基因分型还表明，尽管栖息地持续发生大规模改变以及建造了大型水库，但熊仍在不同栖息地斑块之间移动。该种群有可能作为未来中东地区重新引入计划的遗传储备。鉴于GKM种群对当前和未来保护行动的重要性，该地区栖息地改变的影响应降至最低；例如，通过在水库和主要道路上建立绿色桥梁或走廊，以维持小高加索地区种群间的栖息地连通性和基因流动。
