Feral horses (Equus ferus caballus) in the western United States are managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and United States Forest Service in designated areas on public lands with a goal of maintaining populations in balance with multiple uses of the landscape. Small, isolated populations can be at risk of extirpation from stochastic events and deleterious genetic effects resulting from inbreeding and reduced heterozygosity. The genetic diversity of feral horse herds is periodically monitored using blood or hair samples collected during management gathers (i.e., occasions when the herd is rounded up). We conducted a study to examine genetic characteristics of the feral horse population at the BLM Little Book Cliffs Herd Management Area (HMA) in Colorado, USA, using non-invasively collected fecal samples. Additionally, we explored whether genotypes could be used to document space use and potential sub-population development. We used a random sampling scheme, walking transects in sampling areas covering most of the HMA to find and collect fecal samples of all ages, except those that were deteriorating. We collected >1,800 fecal samples from across the study area in May, August, and October 2014. We then identified unique individuals using a suite of microsatellite loci. Our estimates of genetic diversity from fecal samples were higher than those reported from blood and hair samples taken during recent horse gathers, likely because our sample size and spatial distribution was larger. Genotypes revealed that some individuals were found only in certain parts of the study area and at a higher proportion than random; thus, they could be considered residents in those sampling areas. Using discriminant function analyses, we detected 5 genetic groups in the sample population, but these did not correspond to individuals in specific parts of the study area. Our results support the use of fecal DNA to augment direct observations of horse presence and could be used to detect habitat use and areas of high density. Non-invasive techniques such as fecal DNA sampling can help managers decide whether new individuals need to be translocated to a closed population to maintain genetic diversity without the human safety and animal welfare concerns associated with gathers and invasive techniques. © 2021 The Wildlife Society.

中文翻译：

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来自粪便 DNA 的野马空间利用和遗传特征

野马（Equus ferus caballus) 在美国西部由土地管理局 (BLM) 和美国林务局在公共土地上的指定区域管理，目标是保持人口与景观的多种用途的平衡。小而孤立的种群可能面临因近亲繁殖和杂合性降低而导致的随机事件和有害遗传影响而灭绝的风险。野马群的遗传多样性使用在管理收集期间收集的血液或毛发样本进行定期监测（即，在马群被围捕的情况下）。我们使用非侵入性收集的粪便样本进行了一项研究，以检查美国科罗拉多州 BLM Little Book Cliffs Herd Management Area (HMA) 野马种群的遗传特征。此外，我们探讨了基因型是否可用于记录空间使用和潜在的亚群发展。我们使用随机抽样方案，在覆盖大部分 HMA 的抽样区域中走样，以查找和收集所有年龄的粪便样本，除了那些正在恶化的粪便样本。我们于 2014 年 5 月、8 月和 10 月从整个研究区域收集了 1,800 多个粪便样本。然后我们使用一组微卫星位点确定了独特的个体。我们对粪便样本遗传多样性的估计高于最近马匹收集期间采集的血液和毛发样本报告的遗传多样性，可能是因为我们的样本量和空间分布更大。基因型显示，一些个体仅在研究区的某些部分被发现，并且比例高于随机；因此，他们可以被视为那些采样区域的居民。使用判别函数分析，我们在样本人群中检测到 5 个基因组，但这些与研究区域特定部分的个体不对应。我们的结果支持使用粪便 DNA 来增加对马存在的直接观察，并可用于检测栖息地使用和高密度区域。粪便 DNA 取样等非侵入性技术可以帮助管理人员决定是否需要将新个体转移到封闭种群中以保持遗传多样性，而无需担心与采集和侵入性技术相关的人类安全和动物福利问题。© 2021 野生动物协会。但这些并不对应于研究区域特定部分的个人。我们的结果支持使用粪便 DNA 来增加对马存在的直接观察，并可用于检测栖息地使用和高密度区域。粪便 DNA 取样等非侵入性技术可以帮助管理人员决定是否需要将新个体转移到封闭种群中以保持遗传多样性，而无需担心与采集和侵入性技术相关的人类安全和动物福利问题。© 2021 野生动物协会。但这些并不对应于研究区域特定部分的个人。我们的结果支持使用粪便 DNA 来增加对马存在的直接观察，并可用于检测栖息地使用和高密度区域。粪便 DNA 取样等非侵入性技术可以帮助管理人员决定是否需要将新个体转移到封闭种群中以保持遗传多样性，而无需担心与采集和侵入性技术相关的人类安全和动物福利问题。© 2021 野生动物协会。粪便 DNA 取样等非侵入性技术可以帮助管理人员决定是否需要将新个体转移到封闭种群中以保持遗传多样性，而无需担心与采集和侵入性技术相关的人类安全和动物福利问题。© 2021 野生动物协会。粪便 DNA 取样等非侵入性技术可以帮助管理人员决定是否需要将新个体转移到封闭种群中以保持遗传多样性，而无需担心与采集和侵入性技术相关的人类安全和动物福利问题。© 2021 野生动物协会。