Preliminary genetic analysis supports cave populations as targets for conservation in the endemic endangered Puerto Rican boa (Boidae: Epicrates inornatus).

ABSTRACT: The endemic Puerto Rican boa (Epicrates inornatus) has spent 42 years on the Endangered Species List with little evidence for recovery. One significant impediment to effective conservation planning has been a lack of knowledge of the distribution of genetic variability in the species. It has previously been suggested that boas might best be protected around caves that harbor large populations of bats. Prior study has found Puerto Rican boas at relatively high densities in and around bat caves, which they use both to feed and seek shelter. However, it is unknown whether these behaviorally distinctive populations represent a distinct evolutionary lineage, or (conversely) whether caves harbor representative genetic diversity for the species across the island. We provide the first genetic stud

SUBMITTER: Puente-Rolon AR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3655012 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature