Twenty-five new polymorphic microsatellites for the eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki (Actinopterygii : Poeciliidae), an invasive species in Australia

2012 ◽  
Vol 60 (4) ◽  
pp. 235 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate D. L. Umbers ◽  
Michael D. Jennions ◽  
J. Scott Keogh
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Paternity Analysis ◽  
Gambusia Holbrooki ◽  
Target Species ◽  
Single Population ◽  
Invasive Range ◽  
Polymorphic Microsatellites ◽  
Hardy Weinberg Equilibrium ◽  
Polymorphic Microsatellite ◽  
Eastern Mosquitofish

We isolated 25 new polymorphic microsatellite markers from the eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki. Initially, 454 shotgun sequencing was used to identify 1187 loci for which primers could be designed. Of these 1187, we trialled 48 in the target species, 40 of which amplified a product of expected size. Subsequently, those 40 loci were screened for variation in 48 individuals from a single population in Canberra, Australia. Twenty loci were in Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium and polymorphic, with observed heterozygosity ranging from 0.04 to 0.72 (mean: 0.45 ± 0.18) and the number of alleles per locus ranged from 2 to 5 (mean: 3.20 ± 1.05). These loci will be useful in understanding genetic variation, paternity analysis and in managing this species across both its native and invasive range.

Isolation and characterisation via 454 sequencing of microsatellites from the tawny frogmouth, Podargus strigoides (Class Aves, Family Podargidae)

2012 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 133
Author(s):  
Fiona E. Hogan ◽  
Marian Weaving ◽  
Gregory R. Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Population Genetics ◽  
Gene Flow ◽  
Microsatellite Markers ◽  
Reproductive Ecology ◽  
454 Sequencing ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Shotgun Sequencing ◽  
Target Species ◽  
Single Population ◽  
Polymorphic Microsatellite

We isolated 24 novel polymorphic microsatellite markers from the tawny frogmouth, a nocturnal bird endemic to Australia, which has successfully adapted to urban environments. Initially, 454 shotgun sequencing was used to identify 733 loci with primers designed. Of these, we trialled 30 in the target species of which all amplified a product of expected size. Subsequently, all 30 of these loci were screened for variation in 25 individuals, from a single population in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Twenty-eight loci were polymorphic with observed heterozygosity ranging from 0.03 to 0.96 (mean 0.58) and the number of alleles per locus ranged from 2 to 18 (average of 6.5); we confirmed that 24 loci conformed to Hardy–Weinberg expectations. The 24 loci identified here will be sufficient to unequivocally identify individuals and will be useful in understanding the reproductive ecology, population genetics and the gene flow amongst localities in urban environments where this bird thrives.

Invasive mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) affect egg-laying and behaviour of Spanish pygmy newts (Triturus pygmaeus)

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisa Cabrera-Guzmán ◽  
Carmen Díaz-Paniagua ◽  
Ivan Gomez-Mestre
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Visual Cues ◽  
Reproductive Behaviour ◽  
Amphibian Declines ◽  
Egg Laying ◽  
Physical Contact ◽  
Gambusia Holbrooki ◽  
Free Swimming ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Eastern Mosquitofish

Abstract Invasive species are one of the main causes of amphibian declines worldwide, often through direct predation. Even species or life stages that may not be prone to predation by invasive animals can be affected through alterations of their reproductive behaviour and/or performance. This aspect is less commonly investigated, and may be important for understanding the full impact of invasive species on local amphibian populations. We used laboratory experiments to measure effects of the invasive Eastern mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) on gravid pygmy newts (Triturus pygmaeus) from southern Spain. Gravid newts altered their position in the water column by moving from the bottom of the aquaria to the surface when in the presence of free-swimming mosquitofish, presumably to reduce physical contact with them. Newts also detected and consumed less prey in presence of free mosquitofish. Newts exposed to caged or free-swimming mosquitofish laid fewer eggs than newts not exposed to the invasive species, suggesting that chemical or visual cues alone were sufficient to alter the behaviour of gravid newts. Our results suggest that mosquitofish can reduce the reproductive success of native pygmy newts in the wild, highlighting the need for management efforts to mitigate this impact.

Characterisation of 14 microsatellite markers for the Australian fig psylloid, Mycopsylla fici

2015 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caroline Fromont ◽  
Markus Riegler ◽  
James M. Cook
Keyword(s):  
Illumina Miseq ◽  
Insect Herbivore ◽  
Vertebrate Species ◽  
Moreton Bay ◽  
Lord Howe Island ◽  
Hardy Weinberg Equilibrium ◽  
Sap Feeding ◽  
Polymorphic Microsatellite ◽  
Individual Trees ◽  
Two Populations

The Australian fig psylloid, Mycopsylla fici, is a sap-feeding insect herbivore that is host-specific to the Moreton Bay fig, Ficus macrophylla. It has periodic major outbreaks that can cause complete defoliation of individual trees and massive decrease in local leaf and fruit availability, with significant effects for many insect and vertebrate species that utilise the tree’s resources. We used ⅛ of an Illumina MiSeq run to sequence genomic DNA from two pools of five psylloids from two different field sites. We identified 14 polymorphic microsatellite loci and characterised them in 43 individuals from two populations (Sydney and Lord Howe Island, Australia). Within populations, the number of alleles ranged from 4 to 15 per locus with observed heterozygosity of 0–0.9. Four loci deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. The microsatellite primers will be useful for the study of population genetics and gene flow within and between psylloid populations.

Life History Changes in Eastern Mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) Induced by Thermal Elevation

1991 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary K. Meffe
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Life History ◽  
Nuclear Reactor ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Life History Evolution ◽  
Gambusia Holbrooki ◽  
Genetic Changes ◽  
Thermal Death ◽  
Reproductive Biomass ◽  
Eastern Mosquitofish

Much light can be shed on life history evolution through study of responses of organisms to chronic exposure to a novel or perturbed environment. To determine the influence of 28 yr of temporally unpredictable thermal elevation on their life history patterns, I sampled eastern mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) from a thermally elevated (outflow from a nuclear reactor) and an ambient (farm pond) habitat in South Carolina every month for 2 yr. Fish from the artificially heated environment reproduced all year, had higher reproductive investments (higher clutch sizes and reproductive biomass), and smaller offspring than did fish from the ambient environment, which ceased reproduction from October through March, typical for natural populations of the region. Likely environmental factors responsible for these differences include unpredictable food resources, higher mortality from thermal death, and higher predation by fishes and birds in the heated waters. The extent to which these life history alterations are the result of adaptive genetic changes versus phenotypically plastic responses remains to be tested.

Lipid Dynamics during Reproduction in Two Livebearing Fishes, Gambusia holbrooki and Poecilia latipinna

1993 ◽  
Vol 50 (10) ◽  
pp. 2185-2191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary K. Meffe ◽  
Franklin F. Snelson Jr.
Keyword(s):  
Lipid Content ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Energy Allocation ◽  
Metabolic Efficiency ◽  
Gambusia Holbrooki ◽  
Poecilia Latipinna ◽  
Lipid Dynamics ◽  
Sailfin Molly ◽  
Eastern Mosquitofish

In animals, strategies of energy allocation among growth, maintenance and reproduction can be significantly altered by lipid storage. Poeciliid (livebearing) fishes store energy in late summer and fall for overwintering and first reproduction in spring, but details of energy use in reproduction are lacking. We conducted a laboratory experiment on the eastern mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) and the sailfin molly (Poecilia latipinna) to document changes in lipid content in both the ovary and soma during development of a brood. In females of both species, ovarian lipid content was highest early in embryogeny and then declined; adult somatic lipids increased (were replenished) during embryonic development in mosquitofish, but declined in mollies. Larger clutches sequestered a larger share of body lipids in both species, possibly indicating energetic limits to reproduction. Finally, growth rate was positively correlated with somatic lipid content in both species, indicating among-individual differences in metabolic efficiency or feeding efficiency rather than a trade-off between growth and energy storage.

scholarly journals Toxicity of neem's oil, a potential biocide against the invasive mussel Limnoperna fortunei (Dunker 1857)

2012 ◽  
Vol 84 (4) ◽  
pp. 1065-1071 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricio J. Pereyra ◽  
Gustavo B. Rossini ◽  
Gustavo Darrigran
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Toxicity Tests ◽  
Limnoperna Fortunei ◽  
Target Species ◽  
Potential Toxicity ◽  
A Value ◽  
Closed Systems ◽  
The One ◽  
Invasive Mussel ◽  
Golden Mussel

The golden mussel Limnoperna fortunei (Dunker 1857) is one of the most distributed Nuisance Invasive Species (NIS) in South America, and a threat of great concern for the industry of the area. In this study, we carried out toxicity tests made with a Neem's oil solution with L. fortunei larvae and benthonic adults (7, 13 and 19 ± 1 mm). Tests with non-target species (Daphnia magna, Lactuca sativa and Cnesterodon decemmculatus) were also made with the aim to evaluate the potential toxicity of the Neem's solution in the environment. The LC100 of Neem's solution obtained for larvae was 500 µl/L, a value much higher than the one obtained for D. magna and C. decemmaculatus. Thus, we recommend that it should not be used in open waters. However, since the adults were killed in 72 h and the larvae in 24 h, this product can be used in closed systems, in man-made facilities.

scholarly journals DNA-based species detection capabilities using laser transmission spectroscopy

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (78) ◽  
pp. 20120637 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. R. Mahon ◽  
M. A. Barnes ◽  
F. Li ◽  
S. P. Egan ◽  
C. E. Tanner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Dna Detection ◽  
Field Application ◽  
Economic Damage ◽  
Oligonucleotide Probes ◽  
Target Species ◽  
Dreissena Bugensis ◽  
Species Detection ◽  
Transmission Spectroscopy ◽  
Species Specific

Early detection of invasive species is critical for effective biocontrol to mitigate potential ecological and economic damage. Laser transmission spectroscopy (LTS) is a powerful solution offering real-time, DNA-based species detection in the field. LTS can measure the size, shape and number of nanoparticles in a solution and was used here to detect size shifts resulting from hybridization of the polymerase chain reaction product to nanoparticles functionalized with species-specific oligonucleotide probes or with the species-specific oligonucleotide probes alone. We carried out a series of DNA detection experiments using the invasive freshwater quagga mussel ( Dreissena bugensis ) to evaluate the capability of the LTS platform for invasive species detection. Specifically, we tested LTS sensitivity to (i) DNA concentrations of a single target species, (ii) the presence of a target species within a mixed sample of other closely related species, (iii) species-specific functionalized nanoparticles versus species-specific oligonucleotide probes alone, and (iv) amplified DNA fragments versus unamplified genomic DNA. We demonstrate that LTS is a highly sensitive technique for rapid target species detection, with detection limits in the picomolar range, capable of successful identification in multispecies samples containing target and non-target species DNA. These results indicate that the LTS DNA detection platform will be useful for field application of target species. Additionally, we find that LTS detection is effective with species-specific oligonucleotide tags alone or when they are attached to polystyrene nanobeads and with both amplified and unamplified DNA, indicating that the technique may also have versatility for broader applications.

scholarly journals First record of Siamese twins in Eastern Mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki (Girard 1859)

Limnetica ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Raquel Moreno-Valcárcel ◽  
Ana Ruiz-Navarro ◽  
Mar Torralva ◽  
Francisco José Oliva-Paterna
Keyword(s):  
First Record ◽  
Gambusia Holbrooki ◽  
Siamese Twins ◽  
Eastern Mosquitofish
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