Combining Historical and Molecular Data to Study Nearly Extinct Native Italian Grey Partridge (<i>Perdix perdix</i>) at the Turn of the Twentieth Century
Claudia Greco,
Cristiano Tabarroni,
Irene Pellegrino,
Livia Lucentini,
Leonardo Brustenga,
Lorenza Sorbini,
Nadia Mucci
Affiliations
Claudia Greco
Area for Conservation Genetics, BIO-CGE, Department Monitoring and Protection of the Environment and Conservation of Biodiversity, Italian National Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, ISPRA, Via Cà Fornacetta n°9, Ozzano dell’Emilia, 40064 Bologna, Italy
Cristiano Tabarroni
Area for Conservation Genetics, BIO-CGE, Department Monitoring and Protection of the Environment and Conservation of Biodiversity, Italian National Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, ISPRA, Via Cà Fornacetta n°9, Ozzano dell’Emilia, 40064 Bologna, Italy
Irene Pellegrino
Department for Sustainable Development and Ecological Transition, DiSSTE, University of Eastern Piedmont, UNIUPO, Piazza Sant’Eusebio 5, 13100 Vercelli, Italy
Livia Lucentini
Department of Chemistry, Biology and Biotechnology, University of Perugia, UNIPG, Via del Giochetto, 06123 Perugia, Italy
Leonardo Brustenga
Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Perugia, UNIPG, Via San Costanzo 4, 06126 Perugia, Italy
Lorenza Sorbini
Library ISPRA, Italian National Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, Via Cà Fornacetta n°9, Ozzano dell’Emilia, 40064 Bologna, Italy
Nadia Mucci
Area for Conservation Genetics, BIO-CGE, Department Monitoring and Protection of the Environment and Conservation of Biodiversity, Italian National Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, ISPRA, Via Cà Fornacetta n°9, Ozzano dell’Emilia, 40064 Bologna, Italy
The grey partridge (Perdix perdix Linnaeus, 1758), is a polytypic species with seven recognized subspecies, including P. p. italica (Hartert, 1917), which is endemic to Italy. Until World War II, the species was widespread across Europe but severely declined due to anthropogenic causes, jeopardizing the Italian subspecies gene pool. Genetic characterization and haplotype identification were performed by analyzing the 5′-end of the mitochondrial control region (CR). A total of 15 haplotypes were detected, seven of which were present in the population before 1915. Among them, three haplotypes were never detected again in the individuals collected after 1915. Interestingly, eight of the 15 haplotypes detected in Italian museum samples belonged exclusively to individuals collected after 1915. The obtained data highlight a high presence of specimens originating from other European populations and, despite all the conservation efforts, suggest an uncertain situation of the subspecies in Italy. This research was strongly backed up by extensive bibliographic research on historical documents, allowing the identification of hundreds of restocking events all over Italy. This is an integral part of this research and has laid the foundations for identifying and circumscribing historical periods in which introductions from the rest of Europe had different pressures, aiming to define a baseline.
