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The impact of habitat fragmentation on genetic structure of the Japanese sika deer (Cervus nippon) in southern Kantoh, revealed by mitochondrial D-loop sequences

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Ecological Research

Abstract

In southern Kantoh, Japanese sika deer (Cervus nippon) are distributed discontinuously due to large urban areas and developed road networks. To assess the impact of habitat fragmentation on sika deer subpopulations, we examined mitochondrial D-loop sequences from 435 individuals throughout southern Kantoh. About 13 haplotypes were detected, and their distributions revealed spatial genetic structure. Significant genetic differentiation was observed among seven of eight subpopulations. We found no significant correlation between pairwise F ST and geographical distance among subpopulations. Genetic diversity indices suggested that seven of eight subpopulations had probably experienced population bottlenecks in the recent past. Therefore, and in the light of the results of a nested clade analysis of these haplotypes, we conclude that recent fluctuations in population size and the interruption of gene flow due to past and present habitat fragmentation have played major roles influencing the spatial genetic structure of the sika deer population. This is the first evidence of spatial genetic population structure in the highly fragmented sika deer population in Honshu, Japan.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Kanagawa Natural Environment Conservation Center and Yamanashi Forest and Forestry Products Research Institute, Mr. Shinji Oda, Mr. Takahiro Ohba, Mr. Yukitoshi Totake, Dr. Shin-ichi Hayama and the hunting association members in Kanagawa, Yamanashi, Shizuoka, Saitama Prefectures, and Tokyo Metropolitan for collecting sika deer samples. We express our thanks to all members of the Wildlife Ecology Laboratory of the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute for the use of facilities and helpful support. We are indebted to Mr. Tadamasa Okumura, Mr. Misao Okano, and other members of the Wildlife Management Office Inc., for assistance in making figures with GIS and other helpful support. This study was supported in part by a grant from the Japan Forest Technology Association and the Nature Conservation Society of Tanzawa.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Science of Resources and Environment, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Tokyo, 183-8509, Japan

    T. Yuasa & K. Furubayashi

  2. Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, Ibaraki, 305-8687, Japan

    J. Nagata

  3. Wildlife Management Office Inc., Hyogo, 651-1303, Japan

    S. Hamasaki

  4. Hokkaido Institute of Environmental Science, Southern Hokkaido Wildlife Research Station, Hokkaido, 043-0044, Japan

    H. Tsuruga

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  1. T. Yuasa
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Correspondence to T. Yuasa.

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Yuasa, T., Nagata, J., Hamasaki, S. et al. The impact of habitat fragmentation on genetic structure of the Japanese sika deer (Cervus nippon) in southern Kantoh, revealed by mitochondrial D-loop sequences. Ecol Res 22, 97–106 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-006-0190-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-006-0190-x

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