Applying genomic approaches to identify historic population declines in European forest bats

• Main Authors: Razgour, O, Montauban, C, Festa, F, Whitby, D, Juste, J, Ibáñez, C, Rebelo, H, Afonso, S, Bekaert, M, Jones, G, Williams, C, Boughey, K
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley / British Ecological Society 2023
• Subjects: Biodiversity loss; Chiroptera; Conservation genomics; Demographic history; Landscape genetics; Land use change; Barbastella barbastellus
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10871/134394; https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.14540

This is the final version. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this record Data Availability: Raw sequencing reads of all libraries are available from EBI/ENA via the project PRJEB61793: https://www.ebi.ac.uk/ena/browser/view/PRJEB61793 (Institute of Aquaculture, 2023). Study locations are presented in Table 1. SNP datasets in vcf format are available via the Dryad Digital Repository: https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.wstqjq2qd (Razgour, 2023). 1. Anthropogenically-driven environmental changes over recent centuries have led to severe declines of wildlife populations. Better tools are needed to assess the magnitude and consequences of these declines. Anecdotal evidence suggests European bat populations have suffered substantial declines in the past centuries. However, there is little empirical evidence of these declines that can be used to put more recent population trends into historic context. 2. This study is a collaboration between academics and conservation practitioners to develop molecular approaches capable of providing evidence of historic population changes that can inform conservation status assessments and management. We generated a genomic dataset of 46,872 SNPs for the Western barbastelle, Barbastella barbastellus, a regionally Vulnerable bat species, including colonies from across the species’ British and Iberian ranges. We used a combination of landscape genetics and model-based inference of demographic history to identify both evidence of population size changes and possible drivers of these changes. 3. Levels of genetic diversity increased and inbreeding decreased with increasing broadleaf woodland cover around the colony. Genetic connectivity was impeded by artificial lights and facilitated by rivers and broadleaf woodland cover. 4. The demographic history analysis showed that both the northern and southern British barbastelle populations have declined by 99% over the past 330-548 years. These declines may be linked to loss of large oak trees and native woodlands due to ...