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A first insight into mitochondrial DNA control region diversity of barbary sheep (Ammotragus lervia) introduced in Europe

The Barbary sheep is a caprine (sheep-antelope) ungulate whose native range covers mountains of North Africa where it is considered vulnerable by the IUCN. Its population has been decreasing due to habitat destruction and exposure to poaching. The species was introduced to Europe in the 20th century mainly as a game species since its morphological features make it attractive for trophy hunters. Since then a large free-ranging population was established in Spain and smaller ones were established in Croatia, the Czech Republic and Italy. Possible future negative impacts on the ecosystem were suggested through parasite transmission, competition with native fauna and alteration of the herbaceous plant community. To address populations dispersal potential in non-native habitats it is important to gain information regarding the genetic diversity of European populations. In order to investigate mitochondrial DNA diversity, 66 samples were analyzed, 32 of which were from Mosor Mountain in Croatia, 19 from the Iberian Peninsula (Almeria and Sierra Espuña) and 15 from the Canary islands. Four haplotypes were found in total. Haplotype Amle01 was the only one found in Croatian and the Canarian samples, indicating their possible common origin. Samples from Almeria were monomorphic for the Amle02 haplotype, while samples from Sierra Espuña exhibited three haplotypes (Amle01, 03 and 04) with a gene diversity of 0.71. Future implementation of microsatellite data analysis could reveal more information on illegally introduced Barbary sheep population origin and European population structure.

population genetics, caprine, alien species, mtDNA

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