Killer whales (Orcinus orca) in Iceland show weak genetic structure among diverse isotopic signatures and observed movement patterns

Funding was provided by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (grant number SFRH/BD/84714/2012) and a MASTS (The Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland) pooling initiative (grant reference SG188) funded by the Scottish Funding Council (grant reference HR09011) and contributing...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ecology and Evolution
Main Authors: Tavares, Sara B., Samarra, Filipa I. P., Pascoal, Sonia, Graves, Jeff A., Miller, Patrick J. O.
Other Authors: University of St Andrews. School of Biology, University of St Andrews. Sea Mammal Research Unit, University of St Andrews. Marine Alliance for Science & Technology Scotland, University of St Andrews. Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St Andrews. Institute of Behavioural and Neural Sciences, University of St Andrews. Centre for Social Learning & Cognitive Evolution, University of St Andrews. Bioacoustics group
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2018
Subjects:
Ecological niche
Genetic differentiation
Killer whales
Microsatellites
Orcinus orca
Population ecology
QH301 Biology
QH426 Genetics
DAS
QH301
QH426
Pacific
Iceland
Killer Whale
Orca
Killer whale
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10023/16478
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.4646
Description
Summary:Funding was provided by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (grant number SFRH/BD/84714/2012) and a MASTS (The Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland) pooling initiative (grant reference SG188) funded by the Scottish Funding Council (grant reference HR09011) and contributing institutions to S.B.T. and the Icelandic Research Fund (Rannsóknasjóđur, grant number 120248042) to F.I.P.S. Local adaption through ecological niche specialization can lead to genetic structure between and within populations. In the Northeast Pacific, killer whales (Orcinus orca) of the same population have uniform specialized diets that are non‐overlapping with other sympatric, genetically divergent, and socially isolated killer whale ecotypes. However, killer whales in Iceland show intrapopulation variation of isotopic niches and observed movement patterns: some individuals appear to specialize on herring and follow it year‐round while others feed upon herring only seasonally or opportunistically. We investigated genetic differentiation among Icelandic killer whales with different isotopic signatures and observed movement patterns. This information is key for management and conservation purposes but also for better understanding how niche specialization drives genetic differentiation. Photo‐identified individuals (N = 61) were genotyped for 22 microsatellites and a 611 bp portion of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region. Photo‐identification of individuals allowed linkage of genetic data to existing data on individual isotopic niche, observed movement patterns, and social associations. Population subdivision into three genetic units was supported by a discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC). Genetic clustering corresponded to the distribution of isotopic signatures, mtDNA haplotypes, and observed movement patterns, but genetic units were not socially segregated. Genetic differentiation was weak (FST < 0.1), suggesting ongoing gene flow or recent separation of the genetic units. Our results ...

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