Fernando, P., T.N. Vidya, J. Payne, M. Stuewe, G. Davison, R.J. Alfred, P. Andau, E. Bosi, A. Kilbourn, and D.J. Melnick (2003). DNA analysis indicates that Asian elephants are native to Borneo and are therefore a high priority for conservation.
PLoS Biology 1(1): E6.
NAL Call Number: QH301.P56
Abstract: The origin of Borneo's elephants is controversial. Two competing hypotheses argue that they are either indigenous, tracing back to the Pleistocene, or were introduced, descending from elephants imported in the 16th-18th centuries.
Taxonomically,
they have either been classified as a unique subspecies or placed under the Indian or Sumatran subspecies. If shown to be a unique indigenous population, this would extend the natural species range of the Asian elephant by 1300 km, and therefore
Borneo elephants would have much greater conservation importance than if they were a feral population. We compared DNA of Borneo elephants to that of elephants from across the range of the Asian elephant, using a fragment of mitochondrial DNA, including
part
of the hypervariable d-loop, and five autosomal microsatellite loci. We find that Borneo's elephants are genetically distinct, with molecular divergence indicative of a Pleistocene colonisation of Borneo and subsequent isolation. We reject the
hypothesis that Borneo's elephants were introduced. The genetic divergence of Borneo elephants warrants their recognition as a separate evolutionary significant unit. Thus, interbreeding Borneo elephants with those from other populations would be
contraindicated
in ex situ conservation, and their genetic distinctiveness makes them one of the highest priority populations for Asian elephant conservation.
Descriptors: conservation of natural resources methods, alleles, Borneo, DNA chemistry, mitochondrial DNA chemistry, molecular evolution, gene frequency, population genetics, genotype, geography, haplotypes, microsatellite repeats, statistical
models,
molecular sequence data, phylogeny, polymerase chain reaction, DNA sequence analysis, species specificity, variation genetics.
Vidya, T.N., P. Fernando, D.J. Melnick, and R. Sukumar (2005). Population differentiation within and among Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) populations in southern India. Heredity 94(1): 71-80.
NAL Call Number: 443.8 H42
Abstract: Southern India, one of the last strongholds of the endangered Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), harbours about one-fifth of the global population. We present here the first population genetic study of free-ranging Asian elephants,
examining within- and among-population differentiation by analysing mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and nuclear microsatellite DNA differentiation across the Nilgiris-Eastern Ghats, Anamalai, and Periyar elephant reserves of southern India. Low mtDNA diversity
and 'normal' microsatellite diversity were observed. Surprisingly, the Nilgiri population, which is the world's single largest Asian elephant population, had only one mtDNA haplotype and lower microsatellite diversity than the two other smaller
populations
examined. There was almost no mtDNA or microsatellite differentiation among localities within the Nilgiris, an area of about 15,000 km2. This suggests extensive gene flow in the past, which is compatible with the home ranges of several hundred square
kilometres
of elephants in southern India. Conversely, the Nilgiri population is genetically distinct at both mitochondrial and microsatellite markers from the two more southerly populations, Anamalai and Periyar, which in turn are not genetically
differentiated
from each other. The more southerly populations are separated from the Nilgiris by only a 40-km-wide stretch across a gap in the Western Ghats mountain range. These results variably indicate the importance of population bottlenecks, social
organization,
and biogeographic barriers in shaping the distribution of genetic variation among Asian elephant populations in southern India.
Descriptors: mitochondrial DNA genetics, population genetics, microsatellite repeats, variation genetics, cell nucleus genetics, elephant classification, molecular evolution, geography, haplotypes, India, phylogeny, genetic polymorphism.
Vidya, T.N.C. and R. Sukumar (2005). Amplification success and feasibility of using microsatellite loci amplified from dung to population genetic studies of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). Current Science (Bangalore) 88(3):
489-492. ISSN: 0011-3891.
NAL Call Number: 475 SCI23
Descriptors: Asian elephant, population genetic studies, microsatellite loci, genetics, dung, DNA markers, conservation, free ranging animals.
Vidya, T.N.C. and R. Sukumar (2005). Social organization of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) in southern India inferred from microsatellite DNA. Journal of Ethology 23(2): 205-210. ISSN: 0289-0771.
NAL Call Number: QL750.J68
Descriptors: Asian elephant, social organization, dung, extracted DNA, families, males, matriarchal groups, dispersal, microsatellite, India.
Vidya, T., P. Fernando, D. Melnick, and R. Sukumar (2005). Population genetic structure and conservation of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) across India. Animal Conservation 8(4): 377-388. ISSN: 1367-9430.
NAL Call Number: QH75.A1
Descriptors: Asian elephant, Elephas maximus, conservation measures, population genetics, genetic structure, nuclear microsatellite, mtDNA marker study, phylogeny variation, social organization, India, mitochondrial DNA, allele frequencies,
haplotypes.
Vidya, T. and R. Sukumar (2005). Amplification success and feasibility of using microsatellite loci amplified from dung to population genetic studies of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). Current Science (Bangalore) 88(3): 489-492.
ISSN: 0011-3891.
NAL Call Number: 475 SCI23
Descriptors: Asian elephant, Elephas maximus, population genetics, nucleic acids, feces, molecular genetics, microsatellite DNA, India, fecal microsatellite DNA samples, dung samples, population genetics analysis, evaluation.