Isolation and Characterization of 27 Novel Microsatellite Loci in Critically Endangered Wyoming Toad

Wyoming toad Anaxyrus baxteri is a federally endangered amphibian endemic to the Laramie basin in southwestern Wyoming, USA. A captive breeding program propagates A. baxteri, and the monitoring of genetic diversity in the captive stock can assist in guiding conservation measures of this species. Illumina paired-end sequencing lead to 27 species-specific polymorphic microsatellite genetic markers being developed. Across 24 samples, A. baxteri exhibited two to eight alleles per locus, and observed and expected heterozygosities per locus ranged from 0.292 to 0.958 and from 0.344 to 0.787, respectively. Tests for Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium were nonsignificant except for Abax_13 and Abax_39. These microsatellite markers will be useful for genetic monitoring to aid recovery efforts of A. baxteri captive and wild populations as well as other amphibians in the family Bufonidae.