title: Population Genetic Patterns of Threatened European Mudminnow (Umbra krameri Walbaum, 1792) in a Fragmented Landscape: Implications for Conservation Management.
abstract: The European mudminnow (Umbra krameri) is a Middle Danubian endemic fish species, which is characterised by isolated populations living mainly in artificial habitats in the centre of its range, in the Carpathian Basin. For their long term preservation, reliable information is needed about the structure of stocks and the level of isolation. The recent distribution pattern, and the population genetic structure within and among regions were investigated to designate the Evolutionary Significant, Conservation and Management Units (ESUs, CUs, MUs) and to explore the conservation biological value of the shrinking populations. In total, eight microsatellite loci were studied in 404 specimens originating from eight regions. The results revealed a pronounced population structure, where strictly limited gene flow was detected among regions, as well as various strengths of connections within regions. Following the results of hierarchical structure analyses, two ESUs were supposed in the Carpathian Basin, corresponding to the Danube and Tisza catchments. Our results recommend designating the borders of CUs in an 80-90km range and 16 clusters should be set up as MUs for the 33 investigated populations. How these genetic findings can be used to better allocate conservation resources for the long term maintenance of the metapopulation structure of this threathened endemic fish is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Balaton Limnological Institute, Centre for Ecological Research, MTA, Tihany, Hungary.
authors.forename: Péter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Takács
authors.affiliation: Balaton Limnological Institute, Centre for Ecological Research, MTA, Tihany, Hungary.
authors.forename: Tibor
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Erős
authors.affiliation: Balaton Limnological Institute, Centre for Ecological Research, MTA, Tihany, Hungary.
authors.forename: András
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Specziár
authors.affiliation: Balaton Limnological Institute, Centre for Ecological Research, MTA, Tihany, Hungary.
authors.forename: Péter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sály
authors.affiliation: Balaton Limnological Institute, Centre for Ecological Research, MTA, Tihany, Hungary.
authors.forename: Zoltán
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Vitál
authors.affiliation: Department of Aquaculture, Szent István University, Gödöllő, Hungary.
authors.forename: Árpád
authors.initials: Á
authors.lastname: Ferincz
authors.affiliation: Department of Nature Conservation, Kaposvár University, Kaposvár, Hungary.
authors.forename: Tamás
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Molnár
authors.affiliation: Institute of Forensic Medicine, Network of Forensic Science Institutes, Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: Zoltán
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Szabolcsi
authors.affiliation: Balaton Limnological Institute, Centre for Ecological Research, MTA, Tihany, Hungary.
authors.forename: Péter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bíró
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, Hungary.
authors.forename: Eszter
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Csoma
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods*; D017753:Ecosystem; D056727:Endangered Species; D005060:Europe; D051456:Gene Flow; D005787:Gene Frequency; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005828:Genetics, Population; D005843:Geography; D015810:Linkage Disequilibrium; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics; D011156:Population Density; D011157:Population Dynamics; D045483:Rivers; D017877:Umbridae / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development*