A multi-locus approach to discern conservation units and adaptive potential of Pacific Black Ducks across Australia and surrounding islands

The meaning of wild: Genetic and adaptive consequences from large-scale releases of domestic mallards

“…6 ). In New Zealand, despite releases being discontinued ~70 years ago 34 – 36 the self-sustained feral population is now comparable to wild North American mallards in breeding and survival 74 . Moreover, New Zealand mallards seem to be uniquely adapted to their current environment and landscape (Fig.…”

Showcasing the application of genetics for the conservation management of austral birds

“…The papers in this Emu Austral Ornithology special issue -Conservation Genetics: Showcasing Applications in Austral Birds -clearly demonstrate that genetic data can inform conservation efforts in myriad ways. From delineating conservation management units and revising taxonomy (Burbidge et al 2021;Grosser et al 2021;Joseph et al 2020;, to examining population structure and connectivity within species (Beckmann et al 2021;Brown et al 2021;Lohr et al 2020;Taylor et al 2021;Wold et al 2021), to informing translocation management (Bolton et al 2021;Cowen et al 2021;Dwyer et al 2021;Taylor et al 2021), to understanding better the life histories of threatened species (Forsdick et al 2021), to using genetic data to infer past and future extinctions (Cowles et al 2021;Grosser et al 2021;Ramstad et al 2021), through to landscape-level longitudinal studies across multiple species (Radford et al 2021), we have shown that genetics is a powerful tool that should be in every conservation manager's toolbox.…”

“…However, where traditional phylogenetic taxonomy work, such as the studies highlighted in the previous section, tend to be tree-based, studies of genetic structure focus more on population genetic differentiation and/or migration statistics, and look for clinal patterns such as isolation-bydistance (IBD) across a landscape. Five studies in this special issue take a genetic structure approach to addressing conservation questions, and they range from birds that cannot fly at all to some of the most famous aerial wanderers on the planet (Beckmann et al 2021;Brown et al 2021;Lohr et al 2020;Taylor et al 2021;Wold et al 2021).…”

“…These prolific dispersers have managed to spread right across Australia, out to New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, and over to New Zealand. This geographical spread and subsequent separation have led to the differentiation of three subspecies, which Brown et al (2021) confirm to be genetically distinct using a combination of mitochondrial DNA and nuclear intron sequence data. Interestingly, these three subspecies have differing habitats, generating different conservation concerns and management actions for each (Brown et al 2021).…”

“…This geographical spread and subsequent separation have led to the differentiation of three subspecies, which Brown et al (2021) confirm to be genetically distinct using a combination of mitochondrial DNA and nuclear intron sequence data. Interestingly, these three subspecies have differing habitats, generating different conservation concerns and management actions for each (Brown et al 2021). Genetic data for Pacific Black Ducks also suggest that there is still the occasional Australian Pacific Black Duck introducing new genetic variants into the New Zealand population (in addition to genetic swamping by hybridisation with mallards [Anas platyrhynchos]), and raise the question of whether the genetic differences seen in the Solomon Islands Pacific Black Duck are due to adaptation or genetic drift (Brown et al 2021).…”