The genetic effects on Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L., populations from potential bottleneck situations caused by human activities in two Norwegian rivers, Laerdalselva and Batnfjordelva, were studied by analysing DNA from fish scales collected before and after the populations had been exposed to human-induced changes: river regulation, Gyrodactylus salaris infection and rotenone treatment. Using 15 microsatellites, no significant changes were found in the genetic structure and diversity of four population samples from Laerdalselva collected over 34years. However, salmon from Laerdalselva were significantly differentiated from nearby (angstrom rOyelva) and more distant (Batnfjordelva and Suldalslagen) populations, testifying to the power of the marker system to detect small genetic differences. Furthermore, two population samples from Batnfjordelva, collected 20years apart, showed low but significant differentiation. The lack of effects on neutral genetic composition in Laerdalselva, despite several potentially severe bottleneck events, indicates that stocking and sea cohorts maintain the status quo of this population.

The history of the introduction and dispersal of village chickens across the African continent is a subject of intense debate and speculation among scholars. Here, we synthesize and summarise the current scientific genetic and nongenetic knowledge in relation to the history of the species on the continent. Sociocultural, linguistic, archaeological and historic data all suggest a complex history for the species in Africa, characterized by multiple maritime and/or terrestrial introductions over time and several dispersal routes towards and within Africa. Molecular genetics information supports these observations and in addition suggests possible Asian centers of origin for African domestic chickens, including South Asia and Island Southeast Asia. However, both sets of data were until now too limited in their geographic scope, both within Africa and in comparison with chickens from Asia, to unravel the history of the species in detail. We anticipate that further continent-wide studies combining archaeological, ancient and/or modern genetic information may shed new insights on the history of the species. These will contribute to a deeper understanding of the history of trading networks and human interactions within Africa and between African and Asian societies, at the root of the development and expansion of African civilizations.

Wildlife species exposed to habitat fragmentation are often in need of a conservation effort. The African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) is one of the key species in the Serengeti ecosystem as they form a large part of the herbivore biomass, providing ecotourism and valuable trophies. The ecosystem is a part of Tanzanias protected areas and is administrated under different management practices. Among these, we have analysed the genetic structure of buffalo (n = 68) from the Serengeti National Park (SNP), the Ngorongoro conservation area (NCA) and the Maswa game reserve (MGR). Both the sequence variation in a 493 base pair fragment of the mitochondrial D-loop and the allele frequency-distribution in 15 microsatellites suggest genetic structuring of the buffalo populations within the ecosystem. Both the allele frequency-distribution and the amount of genetic variation were high and similar in SNP and MGR, suggesting a high degree of gene flow between these locations. By comparison, the NCA buffaloes had significantly lower genetic variation and were genetically differentiated from SNP and MGR. Approximate Bayesian computation estimates suggest that the observed genetic structure is of a recent origin, indicating that the recent increases in developmental activity in the region may have influenced the genetic structure of the buffalo within the Serengeti ecosystem.

The timing and origin of reindeer domestication has been highly debated. Recent molecular analyses show several mitochondrial lineages of domestic reindeer across Eurasia suggesting different origins of Fennoscandian and Siberian domestic reindeer. In order to investigate the origin of domestic Fennoscandian reindeer, we sequenced a mitochondrial control region fragment of 68 ancient reindeer remains from archaeological sites in Finnmark, the major county for extant reindeer husbandry in Norway, spanning from ca. BC 3400 to AD 1800. The majority of the Stone and Iron Age reindeer assemblages in Finnmark are from settlements in the eastern part of the county, in the Varangerfjord area. The reindeer remains from these settlements show affiliation to the large and complex Beringian haplotype cluster, found in extant reindeer from the Kola Peninsula to north-eastern Russia. A distinct haplotype shift is observed in the late medieval period, when the typical haplotype signatures of extant domestic Fennoscandian reindeer appeared in coastal regions of both eastern and western Finnmark. These haplotypes were not found among the Stone and Iron Age wild reindeer samples of Finnmark, suggesting that this population was not ancestral to extant domestic reindeer of Fennoscandia.

Despite the importance of the reindeer husbandry in the subsistence of many northern cultures the origin and spread of domestic reindeer is still highly debated. Recent analyses of mitochondrial DNA in reindeer herds across Eurasia revealed distinct geographic structures of domestic reindeer in Fennoscandia and Russia, pointing towards independent origins of domestic reindeer in these areas. A high degree of haplotype sharing between the extant wild reindeer population in the Hardangervidda mountain region in southern Norway and the domestic herds in Fennoscandia indicate that this population could have contributed in the early domestication or augmented the domestic population. However, genetic analyses of excavated reindeer remains from the early medieval period from the Hardangervidda region revealed no haplotype sharing with extant domestic reindeer, demonstrating that reindeer from Hardangervidda did not contribute in the early domestication process in Fennoscandia. The substantial temporal genetic alteration observed in this population is related to introgression of domestic reindeer into the wild gene pool in the 19th century during periods when reindeer husbandry was practiced in this mountain region.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the nature of ossification of the cartilages in the front feet of young, about 2-year-old Norwegian coldblooded horses, and to compare offspring of different sires in this respect. Dorsopalmar radiographs of the front feet of 392 horses (187 female and 205 male) were evaluated for ossification at the base of the cartilage and for separate centres of ossification. The horses were offspring of 45 different sires. Ossification extending above the navicular bone and separate centres of ossification were considered as significant. Minimal to mild ossification at the base of the cartilages was commonly seen, and significant ossification was present in one or more of the cartilages in 11.5% of the horses. The lateral compared to medial cartilages had more ossification and females had more ossification and more separate centres of ossification than males. The prevalence of horses with significant ossifications was significantly higher (46.3%) among offspring of one frequently used stallion than in the group consisting of offspring of 4 other popular stallions (3.5%) and in another group consisting of offspring of other, less frequently used stallions (9.6%). Ossification of the cartilages is considered to have a hereditary background in Norwegian coldblooded horses.

Chicken were possibly domesticated in South and Southeast Asia. They occur ubiquitously in East Africa where they show extensive phenotypic diversity. They appeared in the region relatively late, with the first undisputed evidence of domestic chicken in Sudan, around ∼700 BC. We reveal through a detailed analysis of mitochondrial DNA D-loop sequence diversity of 512 domestic village chickens, from four East African countries (Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda), the presence of at least five distinct mitochondrial DNA haplogroups. Phylogeographic analyses and inclusion of reference sequences from Asia allow us to address the origin, ways of introduction and dispersion of each haplogroup. The results indicate a likely Indian subcontinent origin for the commonest haplogroup (D) and a maritime introduction for the next commonest one (A) from Southeast and/or East Asia. Recent introgression of commercial haplotypes into the gene pool of village chickens might explain the rare presence of two haplogroups (B and C) while the origin of the last haplogroup (E) remains unclear being currently observed only outside the African continent in the inland Yunnan Province of China. Our findings not only support ancient historical maritime and terrestrial contacts between Asia and East Africa, but also indicate the presence of large maternal genetic diversity in the region which could potentially support genetic improvement programmes.

4 Abstract: Genetic diversity studies that utilize phenotypic and genetic information are informative when formulating breeding and conservation plans. The present study utilizes sequences of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) D-loop region of 232 village chickens from Southern and Northern Nigeria to determine the origin and diversity of Nigerian local chickens. Thirty-six polymorphic sites which generate 35 haplotypes are identified. Phylogenetic analyses group Nigerian local chickens to a single clade and 97.8% of the total maternal variation occurs within populations. Reference sequences representing the major chicken mtDNA lineages from Asia indicate the Indian subcontinent to be the likely main center of origin of Nigerian village chicken. Lack of phylogeograph ic structure among Nigerian village chickens suggest extensive genetic intermixing within the country.

Traditional reindeer herding of northern Fennoscandia has been based on seasonal movements independent of national borders. At the beginning of the 19th century, these yearly movements of reindeer were excessive, but during that century the borders between the Fennoscandian countries were closed. By analysing a 190-base pair fragment of the mitochondrial DNA control region in 79 museum samples, we show that the reindeer of northern Fennoscandia were one homogenous population shortly after the national borders were closed. However, anthropogenic activity has effectively ended genetic exchange within northern Fennoscandia and has made the reindeer population within this region heterogeneous. Genetic input of eastern origin is also suggested within the extant Russian reindeer of the Kola Peninsula.

Bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) are distributed in the Arctic in five putative stocks. All stocks have been heavily depleted due to centuries of exploitation. In the present study, nucleotide sequence variation of the mitochondrial control region was determined from bone remains of 99 bowhead whales. The bones, 14C dated from recent to more than 50,000 bp, were collected on Svalbard (Spitsbergen) and are expected to relate to ancestors of the today nearly extinct Spitsbergen stock. Fifty-eight haplotypes were found, a few being frequent but many only found in one individual. The most abundant haplotypes of the Spitsbergen stock are the same as those most abundant in the extant Bering-Chukchi-Beaufort (BCB) Seas stock of bowhead whales. Although F(ST) indicates a slight but statistically significant genetic differentiation between the Spitsbergen and the BCB stocks this was not considered informative due to the very high levels of genetic diversity of mitochondrial DNA haplotypes in both bowhead whale stocks. Other measures such as K(ST) also indicated very low genetic differentiation between the two populations. Nucleotide diversity and haplotype diversity showed only minor differences between the Spitsbergen and BCB stocks. The data suggest that the historic Spitsbergen stock--before the severe bottleneck caused by whaling--did not have substantially more genetic variation than the extant BCB stock. The similar haplotypes of the Holocene Svalbard samples and the current BCB stock indicate significant migration between these two stocks and question the current designation of five distinct stocks of bowhead whales in the Arctic.

A low-density, male-based linkage map was constructed as one of the objectives of the International Equine Gene Mapping Workshop. Here we report the second generation map based on testing 503 half-sibling offspring from 13 sire families for 344 informative markers using the crimap program. The multipoint linkage analysis localized 310 markers (90%) with 257 markers being linearly ordered. The map included 34 linkage groups representing all 31 autosomes and spanning 2262 cM with an average interval between loci of 10.1 cM. This map is a milestone in that it is the first map with linkage groups assigned to each of the 31 automosomes and a single linkage group to all but three chromosomes.

Human populations of Central Asian origin have contributed genetic material to northern European populations. It is likely that migrating humans carried livestock to ensure food and ease transportation. Thus, eastern genes could also have dispersed to northern European livestock populations. Using microsatellite data, we here report that the essentially different genetic distances DA and (deltamu)2 and their corresponding phylogenetic trees show close associations between the Mongolian native horse and northern European horse breeds. The genetic distances between the northern European breeds and Standardbred/Thoroughbred, representing a southern-derived source of horses, were notably larger. We suggest that contribution of genetic material from eastern horses to northern European populations is likely to have occurred.

Assignment tests have been utilized to investigate population classification, measure genetic diversity and to solve forensic questions. Using microsatellite data from 26 loci genotyped in eight horse breeds we examined how population differentiation, number of scored loci, number of scored animals per breed and loci variability affected individual assignment precision applying log likelihood methods. We found that both genetic differentiation and number of scored loci were highly important for recognizing the breed of origin. When comparing two and two breeds, a proportion of 95% of the most differentiated breeds (0.200 < or = FST < or = 0.259) could be identified scoring only three loci, while the corresponding number was six for the least differentiated breeds (0.080 < or = FST < or = 0.139). An identical proportion of simulated breed crosses, differentiated from their parental breeds by FST estimates in the range 0.050-0.069, was identified when scoring 12 loci. This level of source identification was not obtained for the less differentiated breed crosses. The current data further suggested that population sample size and locus variability were not critical for the assignment precision as long as moderately large sample sizes (> or = 20 animals per population) and fairly variable loci were used.

Population demarcation of eight horse breeds was investigated using genotype information of 306 horses from 26 microsatellite loci. The breeds include the indigenous Norwegian breeds Fjord Horse, Nordland/Lyngen Horse, Døle Horse and Coldblooded Trotter together with Icelandic Horse, Shetland Pony, Standardbred and Thoroughbred. Both phylogenetic analysis and a maximum likelihood method were applied to examine the potential for breed allocation of individual animals. The phylogenetic analysis utilizing simple allele sharing statistics revealed clear demarcation among the breeds; 95% of the individuals clustered together with animals of the same breed in the phylogenetic tree. Even breeds with a short history of divergence like Døle Horse and Coldblooded Trotter formed distinct clusters. Implementing the maximum likelihood method allocated 96% of the individuals to their source population, applying an assignment stringency of a log of the odds ratio larger than 2. Lower allocation stringency assigned nearly all the horses. Only three individuals were wrongly allocated a breed by both methods. In conclusion, the study demonstrates clear distinction among horse breeds, and by combining the two assignment methods breed allocation could be determined for more than 99% of the individuals.

The evaluation of the genetic structure of four native Norwegian horse breeds was investigated using 35 generic markers including nine biochemical loci and 26 microsatellites. The proportion of genetic variation measured as heterozygosity and the number of alleles indicated high variation in Fjord Horse and Coldblooded Trotter, but somewhat reduced variation in Dole Horse. No clear signs of bottleneck effects were found in either of the breeds, but significant inbreeding estimates in Nordland/Lyngen Horse may indicate subdivision of this breed. Significant population differentiation was detected between all breeds, also between the recently diverged Dole Horse and Coldblooded Trotter. The principal component analysis supports the close generic relationship between these two breeds.

Animal GeneticsVolume 31, Issue 1 p. 78-79 Characterization of ten equine dinucleotide microsatellite loci: NVHEQ21, NVHEQ54, NVHEQ67, NVHEQ70, NVHEQ75, NVHEQ77, NVHEQ79, NVHEQ81, NVHEQ82 and NVHEQ83 G Bjørnstad, G Bjørnstad Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, The Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, PO Box 8146 Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this authorL Midthjell, L Midthjell Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, The Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, PO Box 8146 Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this authorK H Røed, K H Røed Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, The Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, PO Box 8146 Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this author G Bjørnstad, G Bjørnstad Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, The Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, PO Box 8146 Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this authorL Midthjell, L Midthjell Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, The Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, PO Box 8146 Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this authorK H Røed, K H Røed Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, The Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, PO Box 8146 Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this author First published: 20 July 2004 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2052.2000.579-13.xCitations: 7Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Citing Literature Volume31, Issue1January 2000Pages 78-79 RelatedInformation

Animal GeneticsVolume 28, Issue 5 p. 381-382 Equine dinucleotide repeat microsatellites at the NVHEQ5, NVHEQ7, NVHEQ11, NVHEQ18 and NVHEQ24 loci K H Røed, Corresponding Author K H Røed Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 8146, Dep., N-0033 Oslo, Norway e-mail: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorL. Midthjell, L. Midthjell Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 8146, Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this authorG. Bjørnstad, G. Bjørnstad Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 8146, Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this authorI. Olsaker, I. Olsaker Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 8146, Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this author K H Røed, Corresponding Author K H Røed Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 8146, Dep., N-0033 Oslo, Norway e-mail: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorL. Midthjell, L. Midthjell Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 8146, Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this authorG. Bjørnstad, G. Bjørnstad Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 8146, Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this authorI. Olsaker, I. Olsaker Department of Morphology, Genetics and Aquatic Biology, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 8146, Dep., N-0033 Oslo, NorwaySearch for more papers by this author First published: 28 March 2011 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2052.1997.tb03286.xCitations: 9AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL No abstract is available for this article.Citing Literature Volume28, Issue5October 1997Pages 381-382 RelatedInformation

Genetic parentage was studied in a Norwegian, sub-alpine population of Willow Warblers Phylloscopus trochilus by means of multilocus DNA fingerprinting. We found that 33% (36/109) of the offspring were unrelated to the putative father, and that one additional offspring was unrelated to both putative parents. Altogether 50% (10/20) of the broods contained illegitimate young. The distribution of extra-pair paternity was bimodal, with several broods containing many extra-pair offspring. These results contrast markedly with a previous study of the same species, reporting no cases of mismatched parentage in a Swedish lowland population. Potentially, the high frequency of extra-pair paternity could be attributed to a higher breeding density and/or synchrony in our study population. Cuckolded males had a lower body mass, but no shorter tarsi or wings, than non-cuckolded males. This suggests that a male's loss of paternity is somehow related to his body condition. The data set includes five broods in which the pair male was permanently removed on the day the first egg was laid. There was no tendency that the manipulation increased the frequency of extra-pair paternity.

The importance of male parental care to female reproductive success was investigated in the monogamous Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus by removing the male parent at two different stages of the breeding cycle. Females that were widowed at the start of egg-laying continued breeding and managed to raise their brood on their own with no apparent reductions in numbers fledged or fledgling body-mass, The widowed females compensated for the loss of male assistance by increasing their own food provisioning rate as compared with control females, However, widows spent less time brooding the small young, and the growth rate of nestlings was reduced, In nests where the male parent was removed 7 days after the eggs hatched, the subsequent growth rate of nestlings was still affected, which suggests that male care is influential throughout the nestling period. On average, broods reared by widows fledged 2 days later than did broods of control females. An extension of the nestling period may appreciably affect reproductive success, since 68% of nests failed due to predation, mostly during the nestling period, We suggest that the main role of male parental care in the Willow Warbler is to assure a high growth rate of nestlings, which leads to early fledging and hence a reduced risk of nest predation.