Genotyping faeces of red pandas (Ailums fulgens): implications for population estimation

摘要

The red panda (Ailums fulgens) is an endangered species distributed in the Himalaya and Hengduan Mountains and extremely difficult to monitor because it is elusive, wary and nocturnal. However, recent advances in noninvasive genetics are allowing conservationists to indirectly estimate population size of this animal. Here, we present a pilot study of individual identification of wild red pandas using DNA extracted from faeces. A chain of optimal steps in noninvasive studies were used to maximize genotyping success and minimize error rate across sampling, selection of microsatellite loci, DNA extraction and amplification and data checking. As a result, 18 individual red pandas were identified successfiilly from 33 faecal samples collected in the field using nine red panda-specific microsatellite loci with a low probability of identity of 1.249X 10~(-3) for full siblings. Multiple methods of tracking genotyping error showed that the faecal genetic profiles possessed very few genotyping errors, with an overall error rate of 1.12x 10~(-5). Our findings demonstrate the feasibility and reliability of using faeces as an effective source of DNA for estimating and monitoring wild red panda populations.