Post-bottleneck increase in mitochondrial DNA diversity in Yaku sika deer (Cervus nippon yakushimae) on Yakushima Island, Japan.

ABSTRACT: We investigated the genetic diversity and divergence of sika deer (Cervus nippon) descended from survivors of a catastrophic pyroclastic flow event approximately 7,300 years ago by analyzing the 894 base pairs mitochondrial DNA control region extracted from fecal samples. We focused on Yaku sika deer (C. n. yakushimae) across the remote islands Yakushima and Kuchinoerabujima in southern Japan. On Yakushima, 18 haplotypes were detected, with significant regional variation. Two subpopulation structures on Yakushima aligned with the distribution of pyroclastic flow deposits. Two haplotypes were found on Kuchinoerabujima, one shared with Yakushima. Reconstructed haplotype networks with sika deer from various regions of the Japanese Archipelago suggested that a historical simultaneous dispersal

SUBMITTER: Agetsuma-Yanagihara Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12612164 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature