Evaluation of Microsatellite Markers for Genotyping of Markhor (Capra falconeri) Populations

Population management and recovery plans play an integral role in the conservation and preservation of the threatened species which can become more effective by amalgamation of genetic data of concerned species. Conservation genetics is one such approach to evaluate genetic diversity and population structure of a species that can direct management strategy of population. Pakistan harbors wide variety of wild Caprinae among which Markhor is the largest wild goat and probable ancestor of domestic goat. Flare horned Markhor (Capra falconeri falconeri) inhabits northern areas of Pakistan which are some of world's highest elevated habitats. It is categorized as Near Threatened Globally and Endangered in Pakistan. Being a valuable trophy for hunters, the inception of trophy hunting has increased its population, but still, these species have disappeared from majority of their historic ranges as a result of low reproduction rates, specialized requirements of habitat, genetic isolation in addition to anthropogenic activities. We utilized microsatellite markers for the first time ever to evaluate their applicability and polymorphism for Capra falconeri falconeri and genetically characterized meta-population of markhor inhabiting Gilgit-Baltistan. Our results identified microsatellite markers that can effectively reflect upon population genetics of the nominate subspecies. This study also showed depleted genetic variability in one of the sub-populations which needs to be regarded as a conservation priority. All the other studied sub-populations exhibit overall strong sub-structuring. (C) 2020 Friends Science Publishers