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Age and sex-dependent effects of landscape cover and trapping on the spatial genetic structure of the stone marten (Martes foina)

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Abstract

Maintenance of genetic variation is of critical importance for wild populations since low levels limit the species’ ability to respond to different threats (diseases, predators, environmental changes) in both the long and the short term. Human activities could impact the genetic variation of wild species in multiple ways, including via fragmentation and harvesting. We used an individual-based landscape genetics approach to describe the impact of landscape elements and trapping pressure on the spatial genetic structure of a large sample (n = 370) of the stone marten (Martes foina) in central-eastern France (Bresse). An analysis of isolation-by-resistance using a causal modeling approach showed an influence of landscape cover and/or trapping pressure on gene flow according to age and sex class. Overall, the connectivity in the study area is provided mainly by vegetation cover, while roads and open areas partially impede it. Unexpectedly for this “urban adapter” species, buildings could reduce gene flow. We also emphasized the sex-dependent effect of trapping on gene flow. Genetic differentiation in males was influenced by trapping pressure and landscape structure while only the latter influenced genetic differentiation in females. A stronger isolation by distance in males than in females suggested that at the scale of the study area, males are more exposed to trapping pressure, which reduces effective dispersal. Overall, the combination of both landscape and trapping costs might create an ‘ecological trap’ that could disrupt gene flow, leading to a north–south division in the study area.

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Acknowledgments

We are very grateful to the hunters and trappers associations of Ain, Saône-et-Loire and Ariège who helped us with field work, especially Evelyn Marty, Willy Genton, Léon Boully and Daniel Vivant. We also thank Christine Carter and Radika Michniewicz who kindly edited the English. This study was supported by the DIVA 3-PoulHaieCREM program from the French Ministry of Ecology, the “Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage” and the University of Lyon -CNRS. This work was performed using computing facilities of the CC LBBE/PRABI.

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  1. Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage, CNERA-PAD, Montfort, 01330, Birieux, France

    Jeremy Larroque, Sandrine Ruette & Jean-Michel Vandel

  2. ANTAGENE, Animal Genomics Laboratory, 6 allée du Levant, 69890, La Tour de Salvagny, France

    Guillaume Queney

  3. Université de Lyon, 69000, Lyon, France

    Jeremy Larroque & Sébastien Devillard

  4. Université Lyon 1, Lyon, France

    Jeremy Larroque & Sébastien Devillard

  5. CNRS, UMR5558, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, 69622, Villeurbanne, France

    Jeremy Larroque & Sébastien Devillard

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Larroque, J., Ruette, S., Vandel, JM. et al. Age and sex-dependent effects of landscape cover and trapping on the spatial genetic structure of the stone marten (Martes foina). Conserv Genet 17, 1293–1306 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-016-0862-1

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