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Mammal Study
Abstract
Abstract.
Ecological genetic analyses have recently been applied to the field of biological invasions to describe the genetic background of the invasive species. The raccoon (Procyon lotor) is a medium-sized mammal that is native to North and Central America and has been naturalized into several countries worldwide. In the Boso Peninsula, Japan, raccoons were estimated to have been introduced during the 1990s. We collected DNA samples from 139 raccoons in seven administrative districts and sequenced a part of the mitochondrial D-loop region. We identified two haplotypes of the mitochondrial DNA, which differed by three single nucleotide polymorphisms; therefore, the raccoon population in Boso was founded by at least two females. Although the two haplotypes were identified in all districts, genetic differentiation analysis showed that the northern population was genetically different from the southern population. This genetic gap might not be affected by the landscape, but instead by the expansion history of raccoons. One of the probable hypotheses suggests that the expansion of raccoons may have occurred twice in Boso, a second expansion occurring after raccoons had already spread across Boso. Although this is consistent with historical distribution records, further studies using nuclear microsatellite markers are necessary to validate this hypothesis.
We are indebted to the Agriculture and Fisheries Division and Environment Division of Tateyama City, the Agriculture and Forestry and Fisheries Division of Minamiboso City, the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Division of Futtsu City, the Agriculture Administration Division of Kimitsu City, the Forestry and Fisheries Division of Kisarazu City, the Agriculture and Forestry Division of Isumi City, the Agriculture Administration Division of Mobara City, the Hunting Association of Chiba Prefecture, the Nature Conservation Division of Environmental and Community Affairs Department in Chiba Prefecture, and the Chiba Biodiversity Center for collecting the samples and information on raccoons. We would also like to thank the Conservation Activity Council of Native Freshwater Turtles in Chiba Prefecture, members of the Laboratory of Geographical Ecology and Behavioral Ecology at the Toho University, Mr. and Mrs. Iida, and Mr. and Mrs. Ogasawara for undertaking fieldwork and organizing the research plan. Finally, we would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments and suggestions, and Editage (www.editage.com) for English language editing.
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