title: Mapping black panthers: Macroecological modeling of melanism in leopards (Panthera pardus).
abstract: The geographic distribution and habitat association of most mammalian polymorphic phenotypes are still poorly known, hampering assessments of their adaptive significance. Even in the case of the black panther, an iconic melanistic variant of the leopard (Panthera pardus), no map exists describing its distribution. We constructed a large database of verified records sampled across the species' range, and used it to map the geographic occurrence of melanism. We then estimated the potential distribution of melanistic and non-melanistic leopards using niche-modeling algorithms. The overall frequency of melanism was ca. 11%, with a significantly non-random spatial distribution. Distinct habitat types presented significantly different frequencies of melanism, which increased in Asian moist forests and approached zero across most open/dry biomes. Niche modeling indicated that the potential distributions of the two phenotypes were distinct, with significant differences in habitat suitability and rejection of niche equivalency between them. We conclude that melanism in leopards is strongly affected by natural selection, likely driven by efficacy of camouflage and/or thermoregulation in different habitats, along with an effect of moisture that goes beyond its influence on vegetation type. Our results support classical hypotheses of adaptive coloration in animals (e.g. Gloger's rule), and open up new avenues for in-depth evolutionary analyses of melanism in mammals.
authors.affiliation: PUCRS, Faculdade de Biociências, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lucas G
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Kae
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kawanishi
authors.affiliation: Panthera - Lion Program, New York, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: Philipp
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Henschel
authors.affiliation: Wilderness & Wildlife Conservation Trust, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kittle
authors.affiliation: Asian Leopard Specialist Society, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Arezoo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sanei
authors.affiliation: Wildlife Conservation Society, New York, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Reebin
authors.affiliation: Wildlife Conservation Society, New York, New York, United States of America.
authors.forename: Dale
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Miquelle
authors.affiliation: Landmark College, Putney, Vermont, United States of America.|Botswana Predator Conservation Trust, Maun, Botswana.
authors.forename: Andrew B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Stein
authors.affiliation: Wilderness & Wildlife Conservation Trust, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
authors.forename: Anjali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Watson
authors.affiliation: BK Wildlife Photography Co., Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Laurence Bruce
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Kekule
authors.affiliation: Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ricardo B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Machado
authors.affiliation: PUCRS, Faculdade de Biociências, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.|Instituto Pró-Carnívoros, Atibaia, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Eduardo
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9658-0999
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Eizirik
mesh_terms: D063147:Animal Distribution / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods; D004463:Ecology; D017753:Ecosystem; D046009:Panthera / Q000502:physiology*; D010641:Phenotype; D012641:Selection, Genetic / Q000502:physiology