High genetic diversity and distinct ancient lineage of Asiatic black bears revealed by non-invasive surveys in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 13; no. 12; p. e0207662
• Main Authors: Kadariya, Rabin, Shimozuru, Michito, Maldonado, Jesús E., Moustafa, Mohamed Abdallah Mohamed, Sashika, Mariko, Tsubota, Toshio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 05.12.2018; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Animal behavior; Animal Migration; Animal populations; Animals; Bears; Biodiversity; Biology and Life Sciences; Black bear; Changing environments; Computer and Information Sciences; Conservation; Conservation areas; Conservation of Natural Resources; DNA, Mitochondrial - genetics; Ecology and Environmental Sciences; Ecosystem; Environmental changes; Evolution; Evolution, Molecular; Female; Forests; Genetic aspects; Genetic diversity; Genetic structure; Genetic Variation; Genetics, Population; Genome, Mitochondrial; Genomes; Genomics; Genotype; Habitat fragmentation; Habitats; Haplotypes; Health; Hunting; Landscape preservation; Male; Microsatellite Repeats; Microsatellites; Mitochondria; Nepal; People and Places; Phylogeny; Polls & surveys; Population Density; Population Dynamics; Population genetics; Population number; Populations; Primers; Substructures; Surveys; Ursidae - classification; Ursidae - genetics; Ursus thibetanus; Veterinary colleges; Viability; Wildlife conservation; Nepal; Pakistan; Annapurna (mountain range); Asia; China; Japan; Russia; India

Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus) have a widespread distribution in mountain landscapes, and are considered vulnerable globally, but are low-priority species for conservation in Nepal. Habitat fragmentation, illegal hunting, and human-bear conflict are the major threats to Asiatic black bears a...