Molecular systematics and population genetics of biological invasions: towards a better understanding of invasive species management

Roux, Johannes J. Le; Wieczorek, Ania M.

doi:10.1111/j.1744-7348.2008.00280.x

Cited by 173 publications

(123 citation statements)

References 130 publications

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“…Biologists are increasingly using genetic approaches to evaluate various aspects of biological invasions (Rollins et al 2006;Roux and Wieczorek 2009). Information on potential metapopulation dynamics for an invasive species, which genetic analyses can provide, is important for successful eradication.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic evaluation of an attempted Rattus rattus eradication on Congo Cay, U.S. Virgin Islands, identifies importance of eradication units

et al. 2012

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Congo Cay, U.S. Virgin Islands, has high value for breeding seabirds and is a potential reintroduction site for the endangered Virgin Islands tree boa (Epicrates monensis granti). However, introduced ship rats (Rattus rattus) undermine its conservation value. Three unsuccessful eradication attempts have been conducted since 1990, with the latest in 2006; rats were trapped 1.5 years later. We examined microsatellite DNA and mitochondrial DNA sequences of ship rats from Congo Cay and three other nearby cays to determine if rats found after the most recent eradication effort were surviving individuals or reinvaders from neighboring cays; we had no pre-eradication samples. Only one mitochondrial haplotype was present, implying that historically there was a single invasion or if multiple invasions, rats came from a single source with limited haplotype diversity. Low genetic variation on Congo Cay suggested either a population bottleneck resulting from survivors or a founder event resulting from invaders. F ST estimates, cluster distances, migrant detections, and factorial correspondence analysis indicated low but meaningful levels of gene flow between Congo and Lovango Cays and between Mingo and Grass Cays. Except for two alleles, all other alleles found on Congo were also present on Lovango. Without pre-eradication samples we could not eliminate the possibility of survivors from a failed eradication. However, our data suggest reinvasion from Lovango Cay was likely and that future eradication efforts should consider both pairs of cays as eradication units. Cay juxtaposition and orientation along with ocean currents may explain rat movement, or lack thereof, among these cays.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic evaluation of an attempted Rattus rattus eradication on Congo Cay, U.S. Virgin Islands, identifies importance of eradication units

et al. 2012

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“…At the largest scale, molecular tools can identify cryptic species and introductions, as in the Mytilus example above. Parsing the boundaries of cryptic species can have important management implications (Le Roux and Wieczorek 2009;Geller et al 2010). In some cases, cryptic lineages may have distinct environmental tolerances (Mackie et al 2012), which are masked when these lineages are lumped together into a single management unit.…”

Section: Synthesismentioning

confidence: 99%

Adaptation in marine invasion: a genetic perspective

Tepolt

2014

Biol Invasions

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Genetic adaptation-heritable changes that alter an organism's performance-may facilitate invasion at several scales, but is seldom considered in predicting and managing marine invasions. However, a growing body of research-largely based on emerging genetic approaches-suggests that adaptation is possible and potentially widespread in the marine realm. Here, I review evidence for adaptation in marine invasion, considering both quantitative and genetic studies. Quantitative studies, which consider trait-based differences between populations or individuals without directly examining genetic makeup, have suggested local adaptation in several high-profile species. This implies that invasion risk may not be constant from population to population within a species, a key assumption of most invasion models. However, in many quantitative studies, the effects of heritable adaptive changes may be confounded with the effects of plasticity. Molecular approaches can help disentangle these effects, and studies at the genomic level are beginning to elucidate the specific genetic patterns and pathways underlying adaptation in invasion. While studies at this scale are currently rare in the marine invasion literature, they are likely to become increasingly prevalent-and useful-now that next-generation sequencing approaches have become tractable in non-model systems. Both traditional and emerging genetic approaches can improve our understanding of adaptation in marine invasions, and can aid managers in making accurate predictions of invasion spread and risk.

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“…Instead, research often indicates that invasion success depends on the size of introduction events (Veltman et al 1996;Kolar and Lodge 2001;Cassey et al 2004;Lockwood et al 2005;Sol et al 2007;Dlugosch and Parker 2008;LeRoux and Wieczorek 2009;Hardesty et al 2012). Genetic bottlenecks at the time of introduction can cause low genetic diversity, inbreeding depression and reduced ability to adapt to the new environment, limiting the probability of successful invasion (Frankham et al 2002).…”

Section: Genetic Diversity and Spreadmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grey squirrels in central Italy: a new threat for endemic red squirrel subspecies

2014

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A new population of the invasive American Eastern grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) has recently settled in central Italy from an accidental release in Perugia, Umbria in the early 2000s. The grey squirrel is known to compete with and exclude native red squirrels (S. vulgaris) in the British Isles and Northern Italy, so it represents a potentially important new conservation threat to the red squirrel subspecies of south and central Italy, S. vulgaris italicus and S. v. meridionalis, which are endemic to peninsular Italy. The grey squirrel population range in Perugia is currently expanding at a rate of about 0.29 km/year (SD 0.19), slower than grey squirrel invasions elsewhere in Europe. Nuclear DNA analysed at 12 different microsatellite loci revealed that the grey squirrels in Perugia have extremely low genetic diversity, consistent with a small founder size. Genetic assignment tests indicate that the Perugia population was founded by translocations from an established population in Piedmont, Italy. No genetic substructure is evident yet in the Perugia population. These results together have serious consequences for the management of the grey squirrel invasion in Perugia and the conservation of the red squirrel subspecies: the Perugia grey squirrel population should be eradicated if politically feasible; otherwise new releases of grey squirrels, especially from sources other than the Piedmont population, should be prevented because such introductions could increase genetic diversity, thereby potentially increasing population range expansion rate to the much higher levels seen for more diverse grey squirrel populations elsewhere in Europe.

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Molecular systematics and population genetics of biological invasions: towards a better understanding of invasive species management

Cited by 173 publications

References 130 publications

Genetic evaluation of an attempted Rattus rattus eradication on Congo Cay, U.S. Virgin Islands, identifies importance of eradication units

Genetic evaluation of an attempted Rattus rattus eradication on Congo Cay, U.S. Virgin Islands, identifies importance of eradication units

Adaptation in marine invasion: a genetic perspective

Grey squirrels in central Italy: a new threat for endemic red squirrel subspecies

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