Colonial-driven extinction of the blue antelope despite genomic adaptation to low population size.

Low genomic diversity is generally indicative of small population size and is considered detrimental by decreasing long-term adaptability.1,2,3,4,5,6 Moreover, small population size may promote gene flow with congeners and outbreeding depression.7,8,9,10,11,12,13 Here, we examine the connection between habitat availability, effective population size (Ne), and extinction by generating a 40× nuclear genome from the extinct blue antelope (Hippotragus leucophaeus). Historically endemic to the relatively small Cape Floristic Region in southernmost Africa,14,15 populations were thought to have expanded and contracted across glacial-interglacial cycles, tracking suitable habitat.16,17,18 However, we found long-term low Ne, unaffected by glacial cycles, suggesting persistence with low genomic diversity for many millennia prior to extinction in ∼AD 1800. A lack of inbreeding, alongside high levels of genetic purging, suggests adaptation to this long-term low Ne and that human impacts during the colonial era (e.g., hunting and landscape transformation), rather than longer-term ecological processes, were central to its extinction. Phylogenomic analyses uncovered gene flow between roan (H. equinus) and blue antelope, as well as between roan and sable antelope (H. niger), approximately at the time of divergence of blue and sable antelope (∼1.9 Ma). Finally, we identified the LYST and ASIP genes as candidates for the eponymous bluish pelt color of the blue antelope. Our results revise numerous aspects of our understanding of the interplay between genomic diversity and evolutionary history and provide the resources for uncovering the genetic basis of this extinct species' unique traits.

Assessing contemporary Arctic habitat availability for a woolly mammoth proxy.

Interest continues to grow in Arctic megafaunal ecological engineering, but, since the mass extinction of megafauna ~ 12-15 ka, key physiographic variables and available forage continue to change. Here we sought to assess the extent to which contemporary Arctic ecosystems are conducive to the rewilding of megaherbivores, using a woolly mammoth (M. primigenius) proxy as a model species. We first perform a literature review on woolly mammoth dietary habits. We then leverage Oak Ridge National Laboratories Distributive Active Archive Center Global Aboveground and Belowground Biomass Carbon Density Maps to generate aboveground biomass carbon density estimates in plant functional types consumed by the woolly mammoth at 300 m resolution on Alaska's North Slope. We supplement these analyses with a NASA Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment dataset to downgrade overall biomass estimates to digestible levels. We further downgrade available forage by using a conversion factor representing the relationship between total biomass and net primary productivity (NPP) for arctic vegetation types. Integrating these estimates with the forage needs of woolly mammoths, we conservatively estimate Alaska's North Slope could support densities of 0.0-0.38 woolly mammoth km-2 (mean 0.13) across a variety of habitats. These results may inform innovative rewilding strategies.

From genomic threat assessment to conservation action.

Genomic approaches have the potential to play a pivotal role in conservation, both to detect threats to species and populations and to restore biodiversity through actions. We here separate these approaches into two subdisciplines, vulnerability and restoration genomics, and discuss current applications, outstanding questions, and future potential.

Ancient reindeer mitogenomes reveal island-hopping colonisation of the Arctic archipelagos.

Climate warming at the end of the last glacial period had profound effects on the distribution of cold-adapted species. As their range shifted towards northern latitudes, they were able to colonise previously glaciated areas, including remote Arctic islands. However, there is still uncertainty about the routes and timing of colonisation. At the end of the last ice age, reindeer/caribou (Rangifer tarandus) expanded to the Holarctic region and colonised the archipelagos of Svalbard and Franz Josef Land. Earlier studies have proposed two possible colonisation routes, either from the Eurasian mainland or from Canada via Greenland. Here, we used 174 ancient, historical and modern mitogenomes to reconstruct the phylogeny of reindeer across its whole range and to infer the colonisation route of the Arctic islands. Our data shows a close affinity among Svalbard, Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya reindeer. We also found tentative evidence for positive selection in the mitochondrial gene ND4, which is possibly associated with increased heat production. Our results thus support a colonisation of the Eurasian Arctic archipelagos from the Eurasian mainland and provide some insights into the evolutionary history and adaptation of the species to its High Arctic habitat.

Recent increase in species-wide diversity after interspecies introgression in the highly endangered Iberian lynx.

Genetic diversity is lost in small and isolated populations, affecting many globally declining species. Interspecific admixture events can increase genetic variation in the recipient species' gene pool, but empirical examples of species-wide restoration of genetic diversity by admixture are lacking. Here we present multi-fold coverage genomic data from three ancient Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) approximately 2,000-4,000 years old and show a continuous or recurrent process of interspecies admixture with the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) that increased modern Iberian lynx genetic diversity above that occurring millennia ago despite its recent demographic decline. Our results add to the accumulating evidence for natural admixture and introgression among closely related species and show that this can result in an increase of species-wide genetic diversity in highly genetically eroded species. The strict avoidance of interspecific sources in current genetic restoration measures needs to be carefully reconsidered, particularly in cases where no conspecific source population exists.

Population genomics of the muskox' resilience in the near absence of genetic variation.

Genomic studies of species threatened by extinction are providing crucial information about evolutionary mechanisms and genetic consequences of population declines and bottlenecks. However, to understand how species avoid the extinction vortex, insights can be drawn by studying species that thrive despite past declines. Here, we studied the population genomics of the muskox (Ovibos moschatus), an Ice Age relict that was at the brink of extinction for thousands of years at the end of the Pleistocene yet appears to be thriving today. We analysed 108 whole genomes, including present-day individuals representing the current native range of both muskox subspecies, the white-faced and the barren-ground muskox (O. moschatus wardi and O. moschatus moschatus) and a ~21,000-year-old ancient individual from Siberia. We found that the muskox' demographic history was profoundly shaped by past climate changes and post-glacial re-colonizations. In particular, the white-faced muskox has the lowest genome-wide heterozygosity recorded in an ungulate. Yet, there is no evidence of inbreeding depression in native muskox populations. We hypothesize that this can be explained by the effect of long-term gradual population declines that allowed for purging of strongly deleterious mutations. This study provides insights into how species with a history of population bottlenecks, small population sizes and low genetic diversity survive against all odds.

The history of Coast Salish "woolly dogs" revealed by ancient genomics and Indigenous Knowledge.

Ancestral Coast Salish societies in the Pacific Northwest kept long-haired "woolly dogs" that were bred and cared for over millennia. However, the dog wool-weaving tradition declined during the 19th century, and the population was lost. In this study, we analyzed genomic and isotopic data from a preserved woolly dog pelt from "Mutton," collected in 1859. Mutton is the only known example of an Indigenous North American dog with dominant precolonial ancestry postdating the onset of settler colonialism. We identified candidate genetic variants potentially linked with their distinct woolly phenotype. We integrated these data with interviews from Coast Salish Elders, Knowledge Keepers, and weavers about shared traditional knowledge and memories surrounding woolly dogs, their importance within Coast Salish societies, and how colonial policies led directly to their disappearance.

Range-wide and temporal genomic analyses reveal the consequences of near-extinction in Swedish moose.

Ungulate species have experienced severe declines over the past centuries through overharvesting and habitat loss. Even if many game species have recovered thanks to strict hunting regulation, the genome-wide impacts of overharvesting are still unclear. Here, we examine the temporal and geographical differences in genome-wide diversity in moose (Alces alces) over its whole range in Sweden by sequencing 87 modern and historical genomes. We found limited impact of the 1900s near-extinction event but local variation in inbreeding and load in modern populations, as well as suggestion of a risk of future reduction in genetic diversity and gene flow. Furthermore, we found candidate genes for local adaptation, and rapid temporal allele frequency shifts involving coding genes since the 1980s, possibly due to selective harvesting. Our results highlight that genomic changes potentially impacting fitness can occur over short time scales and underline the need to track both deleterious and selectively advantageous genomic variation.

aMeta: an accurate and memory-efficient ancient metagenomic profiling workflow.

Analysis of microbial data from archaeological samples is a growing field with great potential for understanding ancient environments, lifestyles, and diseases. However, high error rates have been a challenge in ancient metagenomics, and the availability of computational frameworks that meet the demands of the field is limited. Here, we propose aMeta, an accurate metagenomic profiling workflow for ancient DNA designed to minimize the amount of false discoveries and computer memory requirements. Using simulated data, we benchmark aMeta against a current state-of-the-art workflow and demonstrate its superiority in microbial detection and authentication, as well as substantially lower usage of computer memory.

Deep-time paleogenomics and the limits of DNA survival.

Although most ancient DNA studies have focused on the last 50,000 years, paleogenomic approaches can now reach into the early Pleistocene, an epoch of repeated environmental changes that shaped present-day biodiversity. Emerging deep-time genomic transects, including from DNA preserved in sediments, will enable inference of adaptive evolution, discovery of unrecognized species, and exploration of how glaciations, volcanism, and paleomagnetic reversals shaped demography and community composition. In this Review, we explore the state-of-the-art in paleogenomics and discuss key challenges, including technical limitations, evolutionary divergence and associated biases, and the need for more precise dating of remains and sediments. We conclude that with improvements in laboratory and computational methods, the emerging field of deep-time paleogenomics will expand the range of questions addressable using ancient DNA.

Adaptation to the High-Arctic island environment despite long-term reduced genetic variation in Svalbard reindeer.

Typically much smaller in number than their mainland counterparts, island populations are ideal systems to investigate genetic threats to small populations. The Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus) is an endemic subspecies that colonized the Svalbard archipelago ca. 6,000-8,000 years ago and now shows numerous physiological and morphological adaptations to its arctic habitat. Here, we report a de-novo chromosome-level assembly for Svalbard reindeer and analyze 133 reindeer genomes spanning Svalbard and most of the species' Holarctic range, to examine the genomic consequences of long-term isolation and small population size in this insular subspecies. Empirical data, demographic reconstructions, and forward simulations show that long-term isolation and high inbreeding levels may have facilitated the reduction of highly deleterious-and to a lesser extent, moderately deleterious-variation. Our study indicates that long-term reduced genetic diversity did not preclude local adaptation to the High Arctic, suggesting that even severely bottlenecked populations can retain evolutionary potential.

Contrasting genomic consequences of anthropogenic reintroduction and natural recolonization in high-arctic wild reindeer.

Anthropogenic reintroduction can supplement natural recolonization in reestablishing a species' distribution and abundance. However, both reintroductions and recolonizations can give rise to founder effects that reduce genetic diversity and increase inbreeding, potentially causing the accumulation of genetic load and reduced fitness. Most current populations of the endemic high-arctic Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus) originate from recent reintroductions or recolonizations following regional extirpations due to past overharvesting. We investigated and compared the genomic consequences of these two paths to reestablishment using whole-genome shotgun sequencing of 100 Svalbard reindeer across their range. We found little admixture between reintroduced and natural populations. Two reintroduced populations, each founded by 12 individuals around four decades (i.e. 8 reindeer generations) ago, formed two distinct genetic clusters. Compared to the source population, these populations showed only small decreases in genome-wide heterozygosity and increases in inbreeding and lengths of runs of homozygosity. In contrast, the two naturally recolonized populations without admixture possessed much lower heterozygosity, higher inbreeding and longer runs of homozygosity, possibly caused by serial population founder effects and/or fewer or more genetically related founders than in the reintroduction events. Naturally recolonized populations can thus be more vulnerable to the accumulation of genetic load than reintroduced populations. This suggests that in some organisms even small-scale reintroduction programs based on genetically diverse source populations can be more effective than natural recolonization in establishing genetically diverse populations. These findings warrant particular attention in the conservation and management of populations and species threatened by habitat fragmentation and loss.

Historic Sampling of a Vanishing Beast: Population Structure and Diversity in the Black Rhinoceros.

The black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis L.) is a critically endangered species historically distributed across sub-Saharan Africa. Hunting and habitat disturbance have diminished both its numbers and distribution since the 19th century, but a poaching crisis in the late 20th century drove them to the brink of extinction. Genetic and genomic assessments can greatly increase our knowledge of the species and inform management strategies. However, when a species has been severely reduced, with the extirpation and artificial admixture of several populations, it is extremely challenging to obtain an accurate understanding of historic population structure and evolutionary history from extant samples. Therefore, we generated and analyzed whole genomes from 63 black rhinoceros museum specimens collected between 1775 and 1981. Results showed that the black rhinoceros could be genetically structured into six major historic populations (Central Africa, East Africa, Northwestern Africa, Northeastern Africa, Ruvuma, and Southern Africa) within which were nested four further subpopulations (Maasailand, southwestern, eastern rift, and northern rift), largely mirroring geography, with a punctuated north-south cline. However, we detected varying degrees of admixture among groups and found that several geographical barriers, most prominently the Zambezi River, drove population discontinuities. Genomic diversity was high in the middle of the range and decayed toward the periphery. This comprehensive historic portrait also allowed us to ascertain the ancestry of 20 resequenced genomes from extant populations. Lastly, using insights gained from this unique temporal data set, we suggest management strategies, some of which require urgent implementation, for the conservation of the remaining black rhinoceros diversity.

Historical RNA expression profiles from the extinct Tasmanian tiger.

Paleogenomics continues to yield valuable insights into the evolution, population dynamics, and ecology of our ancestors and other extinct species. However, DNA sequencing cannot reveal tissue-specific gene expression, cellular identity, or gene regulation, which are only attainable at the transcriptional level. Pioneering studies have shown that useful RNA can be extracted from ancient specimens preserved in permafrost and historical skins from extant canids, but no attempts have been made so far on extinct species. We extract, sequence, and analyze historical RNA from muscle and skin tissue of a ∼130-year-old Tasmanian tiger (Thylacinus cynocephalus) preserved in desiccation at room temperature in a museum collection. The transcriptional profiles closely resemble those of extant species, revealing specific anatomical features such as slow muscle fibers or blood infiltration. Metatranscriptomic analysis, RNA damage, tissue-specific RNA profiles, and expression hotspots genome-wide further confirm the thylacine origin of the sequences. RNA sequences are used to improve protein-coding and noncoding annotations, evidencing missing exonic loci and the location of ribosomal RNA genes while increasing the number of annotated thylacine microRNAs from 62 to 325. We discover a thylacine-specific microRNA isoform that could not have been confirmed without RNA evidence. Finally, we detect traces of RNA viruses, suggesting the possibility of profiling viral evolution. Our results represent the first successful attempt to obtain transcriptional profiles from an extinct animal species, providing thought-to-be-lost information on gene expression dynamics. These findings hold promising implications for the study of RNA molecules across the vast collections of natural history museums and from well-preserved permafrost remains.

The relative importance of abiotic and biotic environmental conditions for taxonomic, phylogenetic, and functional diversity of spiders across spatial scales.

Both abiotic and biotic conditions may be important for biodiversity. However, their relative importance may vary among different diversity dimensions as well as across spatial scales. Spiders (Araneae) offer an ecologically relevant system for evaluating variation in the relative strength abiotic and biotic biodiversity regulation. We quantified the relative importance of abiotic and biotic conditions for three diversity dimensions of spider communities quantified across two spatial scales. Spiders were surveyed along elevation gradients in northern Sweden. We focused our analysis on geomorphological and climatic conditions as well as vegetation characteristics, and quantified the relative importance of these conditions for the taxonomic, phylogenetic, and functional diversity of spider communities sampled across one intermediate (500 m) and one local (25 m) scale. There were stronger relationships among diversity dimensions at the local than the intermediate scale. There were also variation in the relative influence of abiotic and biotic conditions among diversity dimensions, but this variation was not consistent across spatial scales. Across both spatial scales, vegetation was related to all diversity dimensions whereas climate was important for phylogenetic and functional diversity. Our study does not fully support stronger abiotic regulation at coarser scales, and conversely stronger abiotic regulation at more local scales. Instead, our results indicate that community assembly is shaped by interactions between abiotic constrains in species distributions and biotic conditions, and that such interactions may be both scale and context dependent.

Purging and accumulation of genetic load in conservation.

Our ability to assess the threat posed by the genetic load to small and declining populations has been greatly improved by advances in genome sequencing and computational approaches. Yet, considerable confusion remains around the definitions of the genetic load and its dynamics, and how they impact individual fitness and population viability. We illustrate how both selective purging and drift affect the distribution of deleterious mutations during population size decline and recovery. We show how this impacts the composition of the genetic load, and how this affects the extinction risk and recovery potential of populations. We propose a framework to examine load dynamics and advocate for the introduction of load estimates in the management of endangered populations.

Genomics of adaptive evolution in the woolly mammoth.

Ancient genomes provide a tool to investigate the genetic basis of adaptations in extinct organisms. However, the identification of species-specific fixed genetic variants requires the analysis of genomes from multiple individuals. Moreover, the long-term scale of adaptive evolution coupled with the short-term nature of traditional time series data has made it difficult to assess when different adaptations evolved. Here, we analyze 23 woolly mammoth genomes, including one of the oldest known specimens at 700,000 years old, to identify fixed derived non-synonymous mutations unique to the species and to obtain estimates of when these mutations evolved. We find that at the time of its origin, the woolly mammoth had already acquired a broad spectrum of positively selected genes, including ones associated with hair and skin development, fat storage and metabolism, and immune system function. Our results also suggest that these phenotypes continued to evolve during the last 700,000 years, but through positive selection on different sets of genes. Finally, we also identify additional genes that underwent comparatively recent positive selection, including multiple genes related to skeletal morphology and body size, as well as one gene that may have contributed to the small ear size in Late Quaternary woolly mammoths.

The topological nature of tag jumping in environmental DNA metabarcoding studies.

Metabarcoding of environmental DNA constitutes a state-of-the-art tool for environmental studies. One fundamental principle implicit in most metabarcoding studies is that individual sample amplicons can still be identified after being pooled with others-based on their unique combinations of tags-during the so-called demultiplexing step that follows sequencing. Nevertheless, it has been recognized that tags can sometimes be changed (i.e., tag jumping), which ultimately leads to sample crosstalk. Here, using four DNA metabarcoding data sets derived from the analysis of soils and sediments, we show that tag jumping follows very specific and systematic patterns. Specifically, we find a strong correlation between the number of reads in blank samples and their topological position in the tag matrix (described by vertical and horizontal vectors). This observed spatial pattern of artefactual sequences could be explained by polymerase activity, which leads to the exchange of the 3' tag of single stranded tagged sequences through the formation of heteroduplexes with mixed barcodes. Importantly, tag jumping substantially distorted our data sets-despite our use of methods suggested to minimize this error. We developed a topological model to estimate the noise based on the counts in our blanks, which suggested that 40%-80% of the taxa in our soil and sedimentary samples were likely false positives introduced through tag jumping. We highlight that the amount of false positive detections caused by tag jumping strongly biased our community analyses.

Genomic Consequences of Fragmentation in the Endangered Fennoscandian Arctic Fox (Vulpes lagopus).

Accelerating climate change is causing severe habitat fragmentation in the Arctic, threatening the persistence of many cold-adapted species. The Scandinavian arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) is highly fragmented, with a once continuous, circumpolar distribution, it struggled to recover from a demographic bottleneck in the late 19th century. The future persistence of the entire Scandinavian population is highly dependent on the northernmost Fennoscandian subpopulations (Scandinavia and the Kola Peninsula), to provide a link to the viable Siberian population. By analyzing 43 arctic fox genomes, we quantified genomic variation and inbreeding in these populations. Signatures of genome erosion increased from Siberia to northern Sweden indicating a stepping-stone model of connectivity. In northern Fennoscandia, runs of homozygosity (ROH) were on average ~1.47-fold longer than ROH found in Siberia, stretching almost entire scaffolds. Moreover, consistent with recent inbreeding, northern Fennoscandia harbored more homozygous deleterious mutations, whereas Siberia had more in heterozygous state. This study underlines the value of documenting genome erosion following population fragmentation to identify areas requiring conservation priority. With the increasing fragmentation and isolation of Arctic habitats due to global warming, understanding the genomic and demographic consequences is vital for maintaining evolutionary potential and preventing local extinctions.