Extinctions, genetic erosion and conservation options for the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis).
The black rhinoceros is again on the verge of extinction due to unsustainable poaching in its native range. Despite a wide historic distribution, the black rhinoceros was traditionally thought of as depauperate in genetic variation, and with very little known about its evolutionary history. This knowledge gap has hampered conservation efforts because hunting has dramatically reduced the species' once continuous distribution, leaving five surviving gene pools of unknown genetic affinity. Here we examined the range-wide genetic structure of historic and modern populations using the largest and most geographically representative sample of black rhinoceroses ever assembled. Using both mitochondrial and nuclear datasets, we described a staggering loss of 69% of the species' mitochondrial genetic variation, including the most ancestral lineages that are now absent from modern populations. Genetically unique populations in countries such as Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Mozambique, Malawi and Angola no longer exist. We found that the historic range of the West African subspecies (D. b. longipes), declared extinct in 2011, extends into southern Kenya, where a handful of individuals survive in the Masai Mara. We also identify conservation units that will help maintain evolutionary potential. Our results suggest a complete re-evaluation of current conservation management paradigms for the black rhinoceros.
Department of Zoology, University of Venda, Private Bag X5050, Thohoyandou 0950, Republic of South Africa.|Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, Department of Integrative Biology and Evolution, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, Savoyenstr. 1A, 1160 Austria.
Yoshan
Y
Moodley
Cardiff School of Biosciences, Sir Martin Evans Building, Cardiff University, Museum Avenue, Cardiff, CF10 3AX, United Kingdom.
Isa-Rita M
IM
Russo
National Zoological Gardens of South Africa, 232 Boom Street, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa.|Department of Genetics, University of the Free State, 205 Nelson Mandela Drive, West Park, Bloemfontein, 9300 South Africa.
Desiré L
DL
Dalton
National Zoological Gardens of South Africa, 232 Boom Street, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa.|Department of Genetics, University of the Free State, 205 Nelson Mandela Drive, West Park, Bloemfontein, 9300 South Africa.
Antoinette
A
Kotzé
Department of Zoology, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenyatta Avenue, Nairobi, 00200, Kenya.
Shadrack
S
Muya
Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, Department of Integrative Biology and Evolution, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, Savoyenstr. 1A, 1160 Austria.
Patricia
P
Haubensak
Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, Department of Integrative Biology and Evolution, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, Savoyenstr. 1A, 1160 Austria.
Boglárka
B
Bálint
Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, Department of Integrative Biology and Evolution, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, Savoyenstr. 1A, 1160 Austria.
Gopi K
GK
Munimanda
Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, Department of Integrative Biology and Evolution, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, Savoyenstr. 1A, 1160 Austria.
Caroline
C
Deimel
Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, Department of Integrative Biology and Evolution, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, Savoyenstr. 1A, 1160 Austria.
Andrea
A
Setzer
Department of Biological Sciences, Thomas Building, University of Chester, Chester, CH1 4BJ, United Kingdom.
Kara
K
Dicks
Vienna Museum of Natural History, Burgring 7, 1010, Vienna, Austria.
Barbara
B
Herzig-Straschil
Swedish Museum of Natural History, Frescativägen 40, Stockholm, 10405, Sweden.
Daniela C
DC
Kalthoff
Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Ole Maaløes Vej 5, Copenhagen N, DK-2200, Denmark.
Hans R
HR
Siegismund
Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 1760, České Budějovice, 37005, Czech Republic.
Jan
J
Robovský
Department of Biological Sciences, Thomas Building, University of Chester, Chester, CH1 4BJ, United Kingdom.
Paul
P
O'Donoghue
Cardiff School of Biosciences, Sir Martin Evans Building, Cardiff University, Museum Avenue, Cardiff, CF10 3AX, United Kingdom.
Michael W
MW
Bruford
D017954:Africa South of the Sahara; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001499:Bayes Theorem; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000235:genetics; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006239:Haplotypes / Q000235:genetics; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000235:genetics; D010527:Perissodactyla / Q000235:genetics*; D010802:Phylogeny; D013045:Species Specificity
D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial