Three Decades of Farmed Escapees in the Wild: A Spatio-Temporal Analysis of Atlantic Salmon Population Genetic Structure throughout Norway (original) (raw)
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Aquaculture Environment Interactions, 2015
Farmed escapees may threaten the genetic integrity of native salmon populations through interbreeding. However, introgression requires survival until maturation, successful reproduction and successful early development. These traits are often compromised in domesticated animals selected for high performance in captivity. This makes it difficult to predict introgression levels in native populations. A recent study estimated genetic introgression of farmed escaped Atlantic salmon Salmo salar in 20 Norwegian rivers and found highly population-specific levels of introgression. The underlying causes of these patterns, however, remain unknown. Here, using a modeling approach on empirical and demographic data, we demonstrated that a combination of the observed relative frequency of escaped farmed salmon and the average annual angling catch weights for rivers, provides a significantly better predictor for cumulative introgression of farmed salmon in wild populations than the frequency of farmed salmon alone. Our results suggest that the demography of the native population is a significant factor influencing the relative success of farmed salmon in the wild.
Genetic evidence of farmed straying and introgression in Swedish wild salmon populations
Aquaculture Environment Interactions, 2021
Escaped farmed Atlantic salmon represent a well-documented and ongoing threat to wild conspecific populations. In Norway, the world-leading producer of farmed salmon, annual monitoring of straying and genetic introgression by farmed escapees in wild salmon rivers has been carried out since the late 1980s. In this study, we applied molecular and statistical methods routinely used in the Norwegian monitoring programme to investigate the magnitude of escaped farmed salmon and genetic introgression in salmon rivers on the west coast of Sweden, where suspected escapees have been observed. Our results confirm that escaped farmed salmon stray, successfully spawn, and produce offspring at levels similar to those observed in neighbouring Norway. These findings raise concerns over population productivity and long-term viability and highlight the need for more permanent monitoring of the presence and consequences of escaped farmed salmon in Swedish salmon rivers. Our results further illustrate...
2011
Denne rapporten gjennomfører en kritisk gjennomgang av dagens kunnskap om interaksjoner mellom oppdrettslaks og ville laksepopulasjoner med spesifikk relevans for Norge, samt diskuterer dagens kunnskap om effektiv forvaltning av ville bestander av denne arten. Rapporten beskriver i detalj informasjon om akvakulturproduksjon, livssyklus, utbredelse og populasjonsstruktur, genetiske interaksjoner og bevaring av atlantisk laks. Et eget kapittel drøfter hvilke forskningsområder som trenger spesiell oppmerksomhet i tiden fremover.
BMC Genetics, 2013
Background: Many native Atlantic salmon populations have been invaded by domesticated escapees for three decades or longer. However, thus far, the cumulative level of gene-flow that has occurred from farmed to wild salmon has not been reported for any native Atlantic salmon population. The aim of the present study was to investigate temporal genetic stability in native populations, and, quantify gene-flow from farmed salmon that caused genetic changes where they were observed. This was achieved by genotyping historical and contemporary samples from 20 populations covering all of Norway with recently identified single nucleotide polymorphism markers that are collectively diagnostic for farmed and wild salmon. These analyses were combined with analysis of farmed salmon and implementation of Approximate Bayesian computation based simulations. Results: Five of the populations displayed statistically significant temporal genetic changes. All five of these populations became more similar to a pool of farmed fish with time, strongly suggesting introgression of farmed fish as the primary cause. The remaining 15 populations displayed weak or non-significant temporal genetic changes. Estimated introgression of farmed fish ranged from 2-47% per population using approximate Bayesian computation. Thus, some populations exhibited high degrees of farmed salmon introgression while others were more or less unaffected. The observed frequency of escapees in each population was moderately correlated with estimated introgression per population R 2 = 0.47 P < 0.001. Genetic isolation by distance existed within the historical and contemporary data sets, however, the among-population level of divergence decreased with time.
ICES Journal of Marine Science
Marine aquaculture of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) is a relatively new industry where breeding programs have led to rapid genetic change in the captive populations that were built up alongside conspecific wild individuals. Throughout its 50-years history, marine aquaculture of Atlantic salmon has been associated with escapes, and studies have shown that escapees may enter rivers, spawn successfully, and this may lead to farmed-to-wild genetic introgression and maladaptation in wild populations. Yet, an open question is what factors can best explain the variability in the proportion of farmed escapees in wild populations, and when present, which additional factors lead to introgression. Here, we combine two large-scale data sets from monitoring escaped farmed salmon and introgression in Norwegian rivers between 2006 and 2018 to model how anthropogenic, environmental, and population factors influence proportion of escapees and level of introgression. We found that increasing farming ...
Heredity, 2011
In some wild Atlantic salmon populations, rapid declines in numbers of wild returning adults has been associated with an increase in the prevalence of farmed salmon. Studies of phenotypic variation have shown that interbreeding between farmed and wild salmon may lead to loss of local adaptation. Yet, few studies have attempted to assess the impact of interbreeding at the genome level, especially among North American populations. Here, we document temporal changes in the genetic makeup of the severely threatened Magaguadavic River salmon population (Bay of Fundy, Canada), a population that might have been impacted by interbreeding with farmed salmon for nearly 20 years. Wild and farmed individuals caught entering the river from 1980 to 2005 were genotyped at 112 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and/or eight microsatellite loci, to scan for potential shifts in adaptive genetic variation. No significant temporal change in microsatellite-based estimates of allele richness or gene diversity was detected in the wild population, despite its precipitous decline in numbers over the last two decades. This might reflect the effect of introgression from farmed salmon, which was corroborated by temporal change in linkage-disequilibrium. Moreover, SNP genome scans identified a temporal decrease in candidate loci potentially under directional selection. Of particular interest was a SNP previously shown to be strongly associated with an important quantitative trait locus for parr mark number, which retained its genetic distinctiveness between farmed and wild fish longer than other outliers. Overall, these results indicate that farmed escapees have introgressed with wild Magaguadavic salmon resulting in significant alteration of the genetic integrity of the native population, including possible loss of adaptation to wild conditions.
Conservation Genetics, 2013
Although the tendency of Atlantic salmon Salmo salar to form differentiated populations among rivers and among tributaries within large river systems ([100 km-long) is well documented, much less is known about population structure within small river systems (\30 km-long). In the present study, we investigated the genetic effects of straying of hatchery-reared salmon on population structure and genetic composition within the Ellidaár river system, a small system (21 km total length) in SW Iceland. We analyzed spatial and temporal variation of wild and domesticated samples (farmed and ranched; n = 931) using seven microsatellite loci. Estimates of population differentiation [F ST , genetic tree (D A )] and Bayesian cluster analysis (STRUCTURE) revealed a significant population structure as well as relative long-term temporal stability of the genetic composition in the main river from 1948 to 2005. However, the genetic composition of the tributary populations was unstable and genetically homogenized in recent years. Wild-hatchery hybrids were detected during the influx of strays as well as few years after, suggesting that introgression has changed the genetic composition of the wild populations. More investigations are needed in Iceland and elsewhere on possible fine-scale population differentiation and factors leading to it. Finescale population differentiation as observed in the present study has implications for the resolution with which harvest and habitat management of salmon should be conducted. In addition, farming and ranching operations should be located to minimize potential negative effects of strays on wild fish.
Evolutionary Applications, 2021
domesticated animals alters the gene pool of wild populations and may constrain their viability and evolutionary potential (Glover et al., 2017; Naylor et al., 2005). Farmed domesticated animals are adapted to a captive environment and selected for characteristics that are of commercial importance. The same characteristics may reduce survival and reproductive success in the natural environment (Araki et al., 2007; Bertolotti et al., 2020). Domesticated animals may also originate from a limited set of founder populations and from a geographical range that does not reflect the genetic diversity of the species (Hindar et al., 1991). Reduced genetic diversity and nonnative origin are also commonly found in captive-bred animals that
PLoS ONE, 2014
Due to an improved understanding of past climatological conditions, it has now become possible to study the potential concordance between former climatological models and present-day genetic structure. Genetic variability was assessed in 26 samples from different rivers of Atlantic salmon in Iceland (total of 2,352 individuals), using 15 microsatellite loci. Fstatistics revealed significant differences between the majority of the populations that were sampled. Bayesian cluster analyses using both prior information and no prior information on sampling location revealed the presence of two distinguishable genetic pools -namely, the Northern (Group 1) and Southern (Group 2) regions of Iceland. Furthermore, the random permutation of different allele sizes among allelic states revealed a significant mutational component to the genetic differentiation at four microsatellite loci (SsaD144, Ssa171, SSsp2201 and SsaF3), and supported the proposition of a historical origin behind the observed variation. The estimated time of divergence, using two different ABC methods, suggested that the observed genetic pattern originated from between the Last Glacial Maximum to the Younger Dryas, which serves as additional evidence of the relative immaturity of Icelandic fish populations, on account of the recolonisation of this young environment following the Last Glacial Maximum. Additional analyses suggested the presence of several genetic entities which were likely to originate from the original groups detected.