Ancient DNA and island endemics

Most recently extinct and currently endangered species of birds are inhabitants of islands, where the effects of anthropogenic predation and habitat modification have been most severe. Recently, palaeontological records have shown that the effect of prehistoric humans on insular biotas, particularly...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Nature (London) Vol. 381; no. 6582; p. 484
Main Authors:	Cooper, Alan, Rhymer, Judith, James, Helen F, Olson, Storrs L, Mclntosh, Carl E, Sorenson, Michael D, Fleischer, Robert C
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	England Nature Publishing Group 06-06-1996
Subjects:	Anas laysanensis Animals Base Sequence Bone and Bones DNA Ducks - classification Ducks - genetics Endangered & extinct species Geography Habitats Islands Molecular Sequence Data Paleontology - methods Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid Washington DC United States > US
Online Access:	Get full text
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Summary:	Most recently extinct and currently endangered species of birds are inhabitants of islands, where the effects of anthropogenic predation and habitat modification have been most severe. Recently, palaeontological records have shown that the effect of prehistoric humans on insular biotas, particularly in the Pacific, were far more severe than previously believed, and that many extant flighted bird species that now appear to be endemic to single islands were previously more widespread. Here we report that the combination of ancient DNA and palaeontological techniques can provide information necessary for conservation management of such a species, the endangered Laysan duck (Anas laysanensis).
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 SourceType-Other Sources-1 content type line 63 ObjectType-Correspondence-1
ISSN:	0028-0836 1476-4687
DOI:	10.1038/381484a0