Genetic rescue, outcrossing with individuals from a related population, is used to augment geneti... more Genetic rescue, outcrossing with individuals from a related population, is used to augment genetic diversity in populations threatened by severe inbreeding and extinction. The endangered Norwegian Lundehund dog underwent at least two severe bottlenecks in the 1940s and 1960s that each left only five inbred dogs, and the approximately 1500 dogs remaining worldwide today appear to descend from only two individuals. The Lundehund has a high prevalence of a gastrointestinal disease, to which all remaining dogs may be predisposed. Outcrossing is currently performed with three Nordic Spitz breeds: Norwegian Buhund, Ice-landic Sheepdog, and Norrbottenspets. Examination of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes based on 165K loci in 48 dogs from the four breeds revealed substantially lower genetic diversity for the Lundehund (H E 0.035) than for other breeds (H E 0.209– 0.284). Analyses of genetic structure with > 15K linkage disequilibrium-pruned SNPs showed four distinct genetic clusters. Pairwise F ST values between Lundehund and the candidate breeds were highest for Icelandic Sheepdog, followed by Buhund and Norrbotten-spets. We assessed the presence of outlier loci among candidate breeds and examined flanking genome regions (1 megabase) for genes under possible selection to identify potential adaptive differences among breeds; outliers were observed in flanking regions of genes associated with key functions including the immune system, metabolism, cognition and physical development. We suggest crossbreeding with multiple breeds as the best strategy to increase genetic diversity for the Lundehund and to reduce the incidence of health problems. For this project, the three candidate breeds were first selected based on phenotypes and then subjected to genetic investigation. Because phenotypes are often paramount for
We studied food habits of the badgerMeles meles in a rural Mediterranean area. During one year, 3... more We studied food habits of the badgerMeles meles in a rural Mediterranean area. During one year, 329 faeces were collected twice a month and later analysed. Vegetal matter represented the bulk of the diet, which appears unimodal in comparison to other European studies. Many domestic and wild fruit species and crops were important in total diet by themselves. Invertebrates were frequently eaten, but in smaller volumes than insects in other studies in the Mediterranean area and earthworms in Central/Northern Europe. Vertebrates exceeded invertebrates in terms of volume, although they were present in just a half of the samples. The description of the badger as a generalist or a specialist feeder might have been affected by analyses focused either on volume or occurrences. The results of our study seem to support the hypothesis of the badger as opportunistic food generalist. Wir untersuchten die Ernährungsgewohnheiten des DachsesMeles meles in einem ländlichen mediterranen Gebiet. Ein Jahr lang wurden 2 mal pro Monat Kotproben gesammelt (insgesamt 329 Proben) und später ausgewertet. Die Nahrung bestand zum grö\ten Teil aus Pflanzenteilen, was eine unimodale Verteilung verglichen mit anderen europäischen Studien ergab. Viele gezüchtete und wilde Obstarten sowie Feldfrüchte waren wichtige Nahrungskomponenten Wirbellose Tiere wurden zwar häufig gefressen, jedoch in geringerem Umfang als Insekten in anderen Studien aus dem Mittelmeerraum und Regenwürmer Mittel- und Nordeuropa. Das Volumen der verzehrten Wirbeltiere überstieg das der Wirbellosen, obwohl Vertebraten nur in der Hälfte der Proben vorkamen. Die Beschreibung des Dachses als Nahrungs-Generalist beziehungsweise Spezialist könnte dadurch beeinflusst worden sein, dass sich die Analysen entweder auf den Volumenanteil oder das Vorkommen der verschiedenen Nahrungsbestandteile konzentrierten. Die Ergebnisse unserer Studie scheinen die Hypothese zu stützen, dass der Dachs ein opportunistischer Nahrungs-Generalist ist.
The Norwegian Lundehund breed of dog has undergone a severe loss of genetic diversity as a result... more The Norwegian Lundehund breed of dog has undergone a severe loss of genetic diversity as a result of inbreeding and epizootics of canine distemper. As a consequence, the breed is extremely homogeneous and accurate sex identification is not always possible by standard screening of X-chromosomal loci. To improve our genetic understanding of the breed we genotyped 17 individuals using a genome-wide array of 170 000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Standard analyses based on expected homozygosity of X-chromosomal loci failed in assigning individuals to the correct sex, as determined initially by physical examination and confirmed with the Y-chromosomal marker, amelogenin. This demonstrates that identification of sex using standard SNP assays can be erroneous in highly inbred individuals.
The Norwegian Lundehund breed of dog has undergone a severe loss of genetic diversity as a result... more The Norwegian Lundehund breed of dog has undergone a severe loss of genetic diversity as a result of inbreeding and epizootics of canine distemper. As a consequence, the breed is extremely homogeneous and accurate sex identification is not always possible by standard screening of X-chromosomal loci. To improve our genetic understanding of the breed we genotyped 17 individuals using a genome-wide array of 170 000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Standard analyses based on expected homozygosity of X-chromosomal loci failed in assigning individuals to the correct sex, as determined initially by physical examination and confirmed with the Y-chromosomal marker, amelogenin. This demonstrates that identification of sex using standard SNP assays can be erroneous in highly inbred individuals.
Gathering information on how invasive species utilize the habitat is important, in order to bette... more Gathering information on how invasive species utilize the habitat is important, in order to better aim actions to reduce their negative impact. We studied habitat use and selection of 55 GPS-marked raccoon dogs (30 males, 25 females) at their invasion front in Northern Sweden, with particular focus on differences between males and females, between movement states, and between seasons and times of the day. Daily movement pattern was used to classify GPS-locations into dispersing and settled. We focused on both anthropogenic and natural landscape characteristics. Since we did not have any a priori knowledge about the spatial scale of raccoon dog habitat selection, we first assessed how landscape characteristics of random points changed with distance from the GPS-location they were paired to. Because changes in habitat use became less pronounced at approximately 5 km for all variables, we focused on habitat use at two spatial scales: fine (500 m) and coarse (5 km). Habitat selection wa...
We present data on site fidelity based on 7 adult male roe deer Capreolus capreolus (L.), which w... more We present data on site fidelity based on 7 adult male roe deer Capreolus capreolus (L.), which were studied for two years (March 1999-February 2001) by radiote- lemetry. The median site fidelity of roe deer between year 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 was 63%. Throughout the year 2000, the analysis of distance between core areas (50% kernel) centres revealed 2 tactics of
Genetic rescue, outcrossing with individuals from a related population, is used to augment geneti... more Genetic rescue, outcrossing with individuals from a related population, is used to augment genetic diversity in populations threatened by severe inbreeding and extinction. The endangered Norwegian Lundehund dog underwent at least two severe bottlenecks in the 1940s and 1960s that each left only five inbred dogs, and the approximately 1500 dogs remaining worldwide today appear to descend from only two individuals. The Lundehund has a high prevalence of a gastrointestinal disease, to which all remaining dogs may be predisposed. Outcrossing is currently performed with three Nordic Spitz breeds: Norwegian Buhund, Ice-landic Sheepdog, and Norrbottenspets. Examination of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes based on 165K loci in 48 dogs from the four breeds revealed substantially lower genetic diversity for the Lundehund (H E 0.035) than for other breeds (H E 0.209– 0.284). Analyses of genetic structure with > 15K linkage disequilibrium-pruned SNPs showed four distinct genetic clusters. Pairwise F ST values between Lundehund and the candidate breeds were highest for Icelandic Sheepdog, followed by Buhund and Norrbotten-spets. We assessed the presence of outlier loci among candidate breeds and examined flanking genome regions (1 megabase) for genes under possible selection to identify potential adaptive differences among breeds; outliers were observed in flanking regions of genes associated with key functions including the immune system, metabolism, cognition and physical development. We suggest crossbreeding with multiple breeds as the best strategy to increase genetic diversity for the Lundehund and to reduce the incidence of health problems. For this project, the three candidate breeds were first selected based on phenotypes and then subjected to genetic investigation. Because phenotypes are often paramount for
We studied food habits of the badgerMeles meles in a rural Mediterranean area. During one year, 3... more We studied food habits of the badgerMeles meles in a rural Mediterranean area. During one year, 329 faeces were collected twice a month and later analysed. Vegetal matter represented the bulk of the diet, which appears unimodal in comparison to other European studies. Many domestic and wild fruit species and crops were important in total diet by themselves. Invertebrates were frequently eaten, but in smaller volumes than insects in other studies in the Mediterranean area and earthworms in Central/Northern Europe. Vertebrates exceeded invertebrates in terms of volume, although they were present in just a half of the samples. The description of the badger as a generalist or a specialist feeder might have been affected by analyses focused either on volume or occurrences. The results of our study seem to support the hypothesis of the badger as opportunistic food generalist. Wir untersuchten die Ernährungsgewohnheiten des DachsesMeles meles in einem ländlichen mediterranen Gebiet. Ein Jahr lang wurden 2 mal pro Monat Kotproben gesammelt (insgesamt 329 Proben) und später ausgewertet. Die Nahrung bestand zum grö\ten Teil aus Pflanzenteilen, was eine unimodale Verteilung verglichen mit anderen europäischen Studien ergab. Viele gezüchtete und wilde Obstarten sowie Feldfrüchte waren wichtige Nahrungskomponenten Wirbellose Tiere wurden zwar häufig gefressen, jedoch in geringerem Umfang als Insekten in anderen Studien aus dem Mittelmeerraum und Regenwürmer Mittel- und Nordeuropa. Das Volumen der verzehrten Wirbeltiere überstieg das der Wirbellosen, obwohl Vertebraten nur in der Hälfte der Proben vorkamen. Die Beschreibung des Dachses als Nahrungs-Generalist beziehungsweise Spezialist könnte dadurch beeinflusst worden sein, dass sich die Analysen entweder auf den Volumenanteil oder das Vorkommen der verschiedenen Nahrungsbestandteile konzentrierten. Die Ergebnisse unserer Studie scheinen die Hypothese zu stützen, dass der Dachs ein opportunistischer Nahrungs-Generalist ist.
The Norwegian Lundehund breed of dog has undergone a severe loss of genetic diversity as a result... more The Norwegian Lundehund breed of dog has undergone a severe loss of genetic diversity as a result of inbreeding and epizootics of canine distemper. As a consequence, the breed is extremely homogeneous and accurate sex identification is not always possible by standard screening of X-chromosomal loci. To improve our genetic understanding of the breed we genotyped 17 individuals using a genome-wide array of 170 000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Standard analyses based on expected homozygosity of X-chromosomal loci failed in assigning individuals to the correct sex, as determined initially by physical examination and confirmed with the Y-chromosomal marker, amelogenin. This demonstrates that identification of sex using standard SNP assays can be erroneous in highly inbred individuals.
The Norwegian Lundehund breed of dog has undergone a severe loss of genetic diversity as a result... more The Norwegian Lundehund breed of dog has undergone a severe loss of genetic diversity as a result of inbreeding and epizootics of canine distemper. As a consequence, the breed is extremely homogeneous and accurate sex identification is not always possible by standard screening of X-chromosomal loci. To improve our genetic understanding of the breed we genotyped 17 individuals using a genome-wide array of 170 000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Standard analyses based on expected homozygosity of X-chromosomal loci failed in assigning individuals to the correct sex, as determined initially by physical examination and confirmed with the Y-chromosomal marker, amelogenin. This demonstrates that identification of sex using standard SNP assays can be erroneous in highly inbred individuals.
Gathering information on how invasive species utilize the habitat is important, in order to bette... more Gathering information on how invasive species utilize the habitat is important, in order to better aim actions to reduce their negative impact. We studied habitat use and selection of 55 GPS-marked raccoon dogs (30 males, 25 females) at their invasion front in Northern Sweden, with particular focus on differences between males and females, between movement states, and between seasons and times of the day. Daily movement pattern was used to classify GPS-locations into dispersing and settled. We focused on both anthropogenic and natural landscape characteristics. Since we did not have any a priori knowledge about the spatial scale of raccoon dog habitat selection, we first assessed how landscape characteristics of random points changed with distance from the GPS-location they were paired to. Because changes in habitat use became less pronounced at approximately 5 km for all variables, we focused on habitat use at two spatial scales: fine (500 m) and coarse (5 km). Habitat selection wa...
We present data on site fidelity based on 7 adult male roe deer Capreolus capreolus (L.), which w... more We present data on site fidelity based on 7 adult male roe deer Capreolus capreolus (L.), which were studied for two years (March 1999-February 2001) by radiote- lemetry. The median site fidelity of roe deer between year 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 was 63%. Throughout the year 2000, the analysis of distance between core areas (50% kernel) centres revealed 2 tactics of
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Papers by Claudia Melis