Coincidence of low genetic diversity and increasing population size in wild gaur populations in the Khao Phaeng Ma Non-Hunting Area, Thailand: A challenge for conservation management under human-wildlife conflict

Abstract

The gaur (Bos gaurus) is found throughout mainland South and Southeast Asia but is listed as an endangered species in Thailand with a decreasing population size and a reduction in suitable habitat. While gaur have shown a population recovery from 35 to 300 individuals within 30 years in the Khao Phaeng Ma (KPM) Non-Hunting Area, this has caused conflict with villagers along the border of the protected area. At the same time, the ecotourism potential of watching gaurs has boosted the local economy. In this study, 13 mitochondrial displacement-loop sequence samples taken from gaur with GPS collars were analyzed. Three haplotypes identified in the population were defined by only two parsimony informative sites (from 9 mutational steps of nucleotide difference). One haplotype was shared among eleven individuals located in different subpopulations/herds, suggesting very low genetic diversity with few maternal lineages in the founder population. Based on the current small number of sequences, neutrality and demographic expansion test results also showed that the population was likely to contract in the near future. These findings provide insight into the genetic diversity and demography of the wild gaur population in the KPM protected area that can inform long-term sustainable management action plans.

Impact of Infectious Diseases on Wild Bovidae Populations in Thailand: Insights from Population Modelling and Disease Dynamics

“…habitat destruction, competition). Furthermore, it is unclear what population changes occur during migration [81], so a closed population model can only simulate within-herd dynamics and reflect the population impacts in a small population, such as in small protected areas [21, 20].…”

“…Animals can leave their compartments at the natural death rate ( μ a , μ sa or μ c ) or ageing from calf to subadult ( δ c ) and from subadult to adult ( δ sa ). The initial population was 300 animals, based on the Gaur population size in the Khao Pheang Ma non-hunting area (8 km 2 ) in Thailand [21, 22].…”

“…The natural death rate was estimated based on the mortality rate of wild ungulates and gaur in captivity (21). The initial population was 300 animals, based on the gaur population size in the Khao Pheang Ma non-hunting area (8 km 2 ) in Thailand (22, 23). Thus, the population dynamic model equations at time t can be as following: …”

Genetic Monitoring of the Last Captive Population of Greater Mouse-Deer on the Thai Mainland and Prediction of Habitat Suitability before Reintroduction

“…The mutation and evolution rate in Mitochondrial D-loop region are relatively high as no or less selection pressure for coding. Therefore mitochondrial D-loop marker can be very helpful in investigating the pattern of maternal genetic inheritance and genetic diversity at population level of the same species, while the SRY gene sequence refers to paternal inheritance in mammals [31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38].…”

“…Habitat loss due to urbanization is of great concern in Thailand. Therefore, in addition to genetic monitoring and mating programs, identifying suitable habitats is significant for long-term in situ population recovery [31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38]. Food and water are key integral parts of greater mouse-deer ecosystems, while urbanization produces barrier effects [39].…”