A simple genetic method to distinguish mule deer and bighorn sheep fecal pellets and its application to detecting bighorn sheep colonization events in California
Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) habitat frequently is geographically discontinuous and the metapopulation model fits this species well. Consequently, extinction-colonization dynamics are important and need to be monitored. Much of the conservation history of bighorn sheep, however, was based on a th...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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California Department of Fish and Wildlife
2023-12-01
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| Series: | California Fish and Wildlife Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://journal.wildlife.ca.gov/2023/12/29/a-simple-genetic-method-to-distinguish-mule-deer-and-bighorn-sheep-fecal-pellets-and-its-application-to-detecting-bighorn-sheep-colonization-events-in-california/ |
| Summary: | Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) habitat frequently is geographically discontinuous and the metapopulation model fits this species well. Consequently, extinction-colonization dynamics are important and need to be monitored. Much of the conservation history of bighorn sheep, however, was based on a theory that natural colonization is not part of the biology of this species. That theory is not supported by a growing body of evidence that natural colonization of vacant habitat does occur in this species. Here I present a simple PCR test that distinguishes bighorn sheep fecal pellets from those of mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) as a useful tool in documenting bighorn sheep occupancy where mule deer are present. I include examples from California of applications of this method to investigate potential colonization events. |
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| ISSN: | 2689-419X 2689-4203 |