

Saving the Sage-Grouse Print Bookmark Share more.. Main Image Navi The survival of the greater sage-grouse has caused concern in Canada and has led to one of the largest endangered species battles witnessed in the United States. By September 2015, the US administration will have to make the difficult decision between declaring it an endangered species and opting for a more moderate conservation strategy. Methods developed and used by researchers such as Dr. Krissy Bird to study population genetics of rare birds, may provide essential insights for immediate habitat management and for monitoring the success of future conservation programs. Falling numbers Greater sage-grouse are perfectly adapted to the semi-arid sagebrush country of the western United States and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. The open, almost treeless landscape covered with sagebrush, bunchgrasses, wildflowers and wet meadows creates a unique and delicate ecosystem that the sage-grouse rely on for their survival. During spring, small, sparse areas turn into arenas where these birds display their fascinating courtship behavior. The enigmatic females, with their plumage blending into the sagebrush, flock to communal breeding grounds known as leks, to seek out a mate. The males, twice as large as the females, advertise their virility by swishing their fine feathers and proudly posturing with their yellowish-green air sacs to create their signature “plop” sound. The females mate with the most impressive males before nesting within the tallest and most dense sagebrush to protect their young from predators. Watch the sage-grouse in action Unfortunately habitat destruction, fragmentation and degradation are threatening their existence. The rapid decline of the greater sage-grouse led Dr. Krissy Bird on a mission to find out what effect habitat loss might be having on the birds’ breeding systems and genetic diversity in Alberta. To get answers, she first had to develop a method that would allow her to extract sufficient quantities of high-quality DNA from the precious samples. As she explains, “when you work on endangered bird species, molted feathers are likely your main option for genetic samples. However, molted feathers contain low quantities of poor quality DNA so you have to take extra steps to ensure adequate DNA yields for population genetic analyses. This requires modifying most steps of the DNeasy Blood & Tissue Kit (spin-column) protocol. These modifications result in a DNA extraction success rate of 99.6% for molted feathers instead of the standard 60%.” Uncovering answers Dr. Krissy Bird’s dedication to saving the sage-grouse has led to new insights about sexual selection and the mating structure of lekking species. Over several years, she has shown that despite their small numbers and restricted habitat, sage-grouse in Alberta still maintain a surprisingly high level of genetic diversity and connectivity within Alberta. She also observed high levels of gene flow from other parts of the northern Montana population, which is likely due to a higher number of males breeding than expected. However, since 2013, sage-grouse in Alberta have continued to decline substantially, with less than 100 birds estimated to remain. It’s likely that genetic diversity alone is not enough to save the sage-grouse in Alberta, but combining this with improvements in habitat quality, connectivity and size could help to restore their numbers. Check out our DNeasy Blood & Tissue Kit, gDNA resource center and DNeasy visual protocol to find out how you can easily purify high-quality DNA from your precious samples. You can also view Dr. Krissy Bird's modified DNA extraction protocols. References Bird, K.L., Aldridge, C.L., Carpenter, J.E., Paszkowski, C.A., Boyce, M.S., Coltman, D.W. (2013) The secret sex lives of Sage-Grouse: Multiple paternity and intraspecific nest parasitism revealed through genetic analyses. Behavioral Ecology 24, 29. Bird, K.L. et al. (2011) Living on the edge: population structure and genetic diversity of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) in fragmented landscapes at the northern edge of their range. Conservation Genetics 12, 527. Bush, K.L., Aldridge, C.L., Carpenter, J.E., Paszkowski, C.A., Boyce, M.S., Coltman, D.W. (2010) Birds of a feather do not always lek together: genetic diversity and kinship structure of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) in Alberta. The Auk 127, 343. Lavelle, M. (2015) Sage grouse war tests limits of partnership in West. Science 348, 1304. Disclaimer Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of QIAGEN. QIAGEN has no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them and QIAGEN shall not be responsible for any content of such linked sites. For fast and easy DNA purification DNeasy Blood & Tissue Kit Step-by-step DNeasy protocol Watch the video! Boost your gDNA sample quality! Visit the resource center Contact QIAGEN Global contacts Technical Service Customer Care

Saving the Sage-Grouse

The survival of the greater sage-grouse has caused concern in Canada and has led to one of the largest endangered species battles witnessed in the United States. By September 2015, the US administration will have to make the difficult decision between declaring it an endangered species and opting for a more moderate conservation strategy. Methods developed and used by researchers such as Dr. Krissy Bird to study population genetics of rare birds, may provide essential insights for immediate habitat management and for monitoring the success of future conservation programs.

Falling numbers

Greater sage-grouse are perfectly adapted to the semi-arid sagebrush country of the western United States and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. The open, almost treeless landscape covered with sagebrush, bunchgrasses, wildflowers and wet meadows creates a unique and delicate ecosystem that the sage-grouse rely on for their survival. During spring, small, sparse areas turn into arenas where these birds display their fascinating courtship behavior. The enigmatic females, with their plumage blending into the sagebrush, flock to communal breeding grounds known as leks, to seek out a mate. The males, twice as large as the females, advertise their virility by swishing their fine feathers and proudly posturing with their yellowish-green air sacs to create their signature “plop” sound. The females mate with the most impressive males before nesting within the tallest and most dense sagebrush to protect their young from predators.

Watch the sage-grouse in action

Unfortunately habitat destruction, fragmentation and degradation are threatening their existence. The rapid decline of the greater sage-grouse led Dr. Krissy Bird on a mission to find out what effect habitat loss might be having on the birds’ breeding systems and genetic diversity in Alberta. To get answers, she first had to develop a method that would allow her to extract sufficient quantities of high-quality DNA from the precious samples.

As she explains, “when you work on endangered bird species, molted feathers are likely your main option for genetic samples. However, molted feathers contain low quantities of poor quality DNA so you have to take extra steps to ensure adequate DNA yields for population genetic analyses. This requires modifying most steps of the DNeasy Blood & Tissue Kit (spin-column) protocol. These modifications result in a DNA extraction success rate of 99.6% for molted feathers instead of the standard 60%.”

Uncovering answers

Dr. Krissy Bird’s dedication to saving the sage-grouse has led to new insights about sexual selection and the mating structure of lekking species. Over several years, she has shown that despite their small numbers and restricted habitat, sage-grouse in Alberta still maintain a surprisingly high level of genetic diversity and connectivity within Alberta. She also observed high levels of gene flow from other parts of the northern Montana population, which is likely due to a higher number of males breeding than expected. However, since 2013, sage-grouse in Alberta have continued to decline substantially, with less than 100 birds estimated to remain. It’s likely that genetic diversity alone is not enough to save the sage-grouse in Alberta, but combining this with improvements in habitat quality, connectivity and size could help to restore their numbers.

Check out our DNeasy Blood & Tissue Kit, gDNA resource center and DNeasy visual protocol to find out how you can easily purify high-quality DNA from your precious samples. You can also view Dr. Krissy Bird's modified DNA extraction protocols.

References

Bird, K.L., Aldridge, C.L., Carpenter, J.E., Paszkowski, C.A., Boyce, M.S., Coltman, D.W. (2013) The secret sex lives of Sage-Grouse: Multiple paternity and intraspecific nest parasitism revealed through genetic analyses. Behavioral Ecology 24, 29.
Bird, K.L. et al. (2011) Living on the edge: population structure and genetic diversity of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) in fragmented landscapes at the northern edge of their range. Conservation Genetics 12, 527.
Bush, K.L., Aldridge, C.L., Carpenter, J.E., Paszkowski, C.A., Boyce, M.S., Coltman, D.W. (2010) Birds of a feather do not always lek together: genetic diversity and kinship structure of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) in Alberta. The Auk 127, 343.
Lavelle, M. (2015) Sage grouse war tests limits of partnership in West. Science 348, 1304.

Disclaimer

Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of QIAGEN. QIAGEN has no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them and QIAGEN shall not be responsible for any content of such linked sites.