Using Genetic Analyses to Gain Insight on a Rare Bat, Corynorhinus Townsendii Pallescens

Abstract

Maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and 5 bi-parentally inherited microsatellite DNA markers were used to investigate population and social structure within and among populations and gender and demographic history of Corynorhinus townsendii pallescens, roosting in gypsum caves in western Oklahoma. Results showed that males had high gene flow and dispersal, but BAPS individual-level clustering analysis revealed 9 admixed clusters. Females were hindered in dispersal and had high population structure, with populations separated by a geographic barrier. One population of females used gypsum caves extending from Kansas southeast to Blaine County (northern grouping) and another population used gypsum caves in Washita County (southern grouping). Relatedness was analyzed for social structure with the assumption that r-values corresponded to known pedigrees and suggested the northern group was more related than the southern group. Demographic analysis revealed a recent bottleneck in the southern group.