Context The majority of remaining tropical forests exist as fragments embedded in a matrix of agricultural production. Understanding the effects of these agricultural landscapes on species dispersal is crucial in the development of successful conservation planning. Objective The objective of this study was to examine the influence of five landscape features within a coffee agroecosystem (i.e., slope, elevation, streams, riparian effect, and tree cover) on Heteromys desmarestianus goldmani gene flow. We expected that landscape variables linked to more intense agricultural management (e.g., low tree cover, riparian effect) would reduce gene flow in H. d. goldmani . Methods This study was conducted in a 4 km × 2 km area within the coffee growing region of Soconusco in Chiapas, Mexico. We used 12 microsatellite markers to calculate individual-based estimates of gene flow as a measure of dispersal. We used resistance surface modelling, using ResistanceGA (Peterman in Methods Ecol Evol 9:1638–1647, 2018) to identify if any of the landscape features analyzed explained the patterns of gene flow. Results Our results showed patterns of population structure and weak isolation-by-distance, as found previously for H. d. goldmani by Otero Jiménez et al. (Conserv Genet 19:495–499, 2018). Slope and tree cover were the two landscape features that could best explain gene flow patterns. More specifically, intermediate slopes and tree cover represent the lowest resistance to gene flow for H. d. goldmani and, thus, have a role in promoting gene flow in this species. Conclusion This study highlights the potential of integrating molecular and landscape data to explore population connectivity of elusive species, such as terrestrial small mammals. Our study adds to the growing body of literature in landscape genetics by demonstrating that a rodent species shows population structure at a small scale resulting from landscape factors linked to agricultural management.

中文翻译：

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咖啡农业生态系统中森林啮齿动物连通性的景观驱动因素

背景 大多数剩余的热带森林以嵌入农业生产矩阵的碎片形式存在。了解这些农业景观对物种扩散的影响对于制定成功的保护规划至关重要。目的 本研究的目的是检查咖啡农业生态系统内的五种景观特征（即坡度、海拔、溪流、河岸效应和树木覆盖）对 Heteromys desmarestianus goldmani 基因流的影响。我们预计与更密集的农业管理相关的景观变量（例如，低树覆盖、河岸效应）将减少 H. d. 中的基因流动。戈德曼尼 方法 本研究在墨西哥恰帕斯州 Soconusco 咖啡种植区的 4 公里 × 2 公里区域内进行。我们使用了 12 个微卫星标记来计算基于个体的基因流估计值作为分散的度量。我们使用阻力表面建模，使用 ResistanceGA（Peterman in Methods Ecol Evol 9:1638–1647, 2018）来确定分析的任何景观特征是否解释了基因流动的模式。结果我们的结果显示了种群结构的模式和弱距离隔离，正如之前发现的 H. d. 奥特罗·希门尼斯 (Otero Jiménez) 等人的 Goldmani。(Conserv Genet 19:495–499, 2018)。坡度和树木覆盖是最能解释基因流动模式的两个景观特征。更具体地说，中间坡度和树木覆盖对 H. d. 基因流的抵抗力最低。goldmani 并因此在促进该物种的基因流动方面发挥作用。结论 这项研究强调了整合分子和景观数据以探索难以捉摸的物种（例如陆生小型哺乳动物）的种群连通性的潜力。我们的研究通过证明啮齿动物物种在小范围内显示由与农业管理相关的景观因素导致的种群结构，增加了景观遗传学方面不断增长的文献。