title: The efficiency of close inbreeding to reduce genetic adaptation to captivity.
abstract: Although ex situ conservation is indispensable for thousands of species, captive breeding is associated with negative genetic changes: loss of genetic variance and genetic adaptation to captivity that is deleterious in the wild. We used quantitative genetic individual-based simulations to model the effect of genetic management on the evolution of a quantitative trait and the associated fitness of wild-born individuals that are brought to captivity. We also examined the feasibility of the breeding strategies under a scenario of a large number of loci subject to deleterious mutations. We compared two breeding strategies: repeated half-sib mating and a method of minimizing mean coancestry (referred to as gc/mc). Our major finding was that half-sib mating is more effective in reducing genetic adaptation to captivity than the gc/mc method. Moreover, half-sib mating retains larger allelic and adaptive genetic variance. Relative to initial standing variation, the additive variance of the quantitative trait increased under half-sib mating during the sojourn in captivity. Although fragmentation into smaller populations improves the efficiency of the gc/mc method, half-sib mating still performs better in the scenarios tested. Half-sib mating shows two caveats that could mitigate its beneficial effects: low heterozygosity and high risk of extinction when populations are of low fecundity and size and one of the following conditions are met: (i) the strength of selection in captivity is comparable with that in the wild, (ii) deleterious mutations are numerous and only slightly deleterious. Experimental validation of half-sib mating is therefore needed for the advancement of captive breeding programs.
authors: Biodiversity Conservation Laboratory, Department of Environment, University of the Aegean, Mytilene, Greece.
authors: K
authors: K
authors: Theodorou
authors: UMR 7204CESCO MNHN-CNRS-UPMC, CP 51, Paris, France.
authors: D
authors: D
authors: Couvet
mesh_terms: D000220:Adaptation, Biological / Q000235:genetics*; D000818:Animals; D003198:Computer Simulation; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods; D056727:Endangered Species; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D056084:Genetic Fitness; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005828:Genetics, Population; D007178:Inbreeding; D008297:Male; D008957:Models, Genetic; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci; D012641:Selection, Genetic