title: Genetic relationships of grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) in the Prudhoe Bay region of Alaska: inference from microsatellite DNA, mitochondrial DNA, and field observations.
abstract: Grizzly bears are abundant in the region of the Prudhoe Bay oil fields in northern Alaska. We used field observations and molecular genetic data to identify parent-offspring and sibling relationships among bears in this region. We determined genotypes at 14 microsatellite DNA loci and the cytochrome b gene of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) for 36 bears. We identified 17 possible mother-offspring pairs and 8 possible father-offspring pairs. This includes verification of the relationships of 14 mother-offspring pairs identified from field observations. Three additional mother-offspring pairs and all eight father-offspring pairs were determined from genetic and age data. Relatedness coefficients based on numbers of shared alleles between individuals were as expected: approximately 0.50 for parent-offspring and sibling pairs and approximately 0.75 for a father-offspring pair resulting from a father-daughter mating. The level of genetic variation (mean number of alleles per locus = 6.6, mean heterozygosity = 70%) and allele frequencies in grizzly bears in the Prudhoe Bay region are similar to those in other parts of the species' range.
authors.affiliation: LGL Alaska Research Associates, Anchorage, AK 99508, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cronin
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shideler
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hechtel
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Strobeck
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Paetkau
mesh_terms: D000413:Alaska; D000818:Animals; D001947:Breeding; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000737:chemistry*; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D008297:Male; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats; D010375:Pedigree; D001503:Ursidae / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial