Conservation Genetics of the Hawaiian Hoary Bat
Completed
By Pacific Island Ecosystems Research Center
March 1, 2023
The Hawaiian Hoary Bat (Lasiurus semotus) or ʻōpeʻapeʻa is the only extant land mammal native to the Hawaiian archipelago and is listed as endangered due to apparent population declines, and a lack of knowledge concerning its distribution, abundance, and habitat needs. This study is designed to apply molecular techniques to document demographic information, assess genetic variability, describe population structure for bat populations across the state of Hawaiְ‘i, and provide accurate sexing information for bat fatalities at wind facilities.
Objectives:
Collect bat tissue for DNA analysis and sex genotyping
- Obtain samples from existing USGS collection, specimens submitted by wind facilities, Federal and State agencies, and live bats captured during concurrent projects
- Increase geographic coverage of bats where possible using field captures and recovered specimens
- Extract and preserve high-quality DNA for molecular studies
Determine population structure of Hawaiian hoary bats across the archipelago using traditional genetic and next generation genomic techniques
- Sequence the CO1 mitochondrial DNA region for 250+ bats using Sanger sequencing
- Test and amplify up to 20 microsatellite markers for 250+ individuals using fragment analysis
- Sequence high-quality bat samples using next generation genomic techniques, construct a reference genome for the Hawaiian hoary bat, and generate a library of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)
- Analyze population level genetic diversity and associated parameters, maternal and nuclear inter- and intra-island population structure, and estimate rates and direction of potential gene flow
- Analyze SNPs to detect regions of genomic divergence, potential selection, diversity, and population structure
Estimate historical and current effective sizes and past bottlenecks for island populations on Oahu, Maui, and Hawai‘i
- Utilize mitochondrial and microsatellite data to produce estimates of historical female and contemporary effective population sizes
- Test for presence of past bottlenecks, and recent population expansions and contractions
- Estimate effective population sizes utilizing genomic markers such as SNPs
Test and utilize a simple genetic method to determine the sex of Hawaiian hoary bats collected from local wind facilities
- Determine male and female genotypes from over 100 individuals
- Verify genetic sex determination method for Hawaiian hoary bats by utilizing samples from known sex individuals and applied to carcasses of unknown sex
Below are data associated with this project.
Hawaiian hoary bat population genetics 1988 to 2020
Genetic diversity levels, effective population size estimates, and population structure of the endangered Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus semotus, also known as Aeorestes semotus) were examined across the islands of Hawai‘i, Maui, O‘ahu, and Kaua‘i using eighteen nuclear microsatellite loci and one mitochondrial gene from 339 individuals collected between 1988 and 2020. The study extracted DNA for po
Hawaiian Islands Hawaiian Hoary Bat Genetic Sexing 2009-2020 (ver. 6.0, January 2021)
We tested the utility of a protocol using genetic markers that previously proved successful to identify the sex of Vespertilionid bats on tissues collected from live bats and carcasses of varying age from the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus). This molecular method is based on genes unique to X and Y chromosomes in mammals and previously was used successfully on North American hoary b
Hawaiian Islands Hawaiian hoary bat samples, genome assembly, and SNP genotypes, 2009-2015
This dataset features tissue collection information, reference genome assembly, and single nucleotide polymorphisim (SNP) genotypes of 23 Hawaiian hoary bats collected across four Hawaiian Islands, Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, and Kauai. These data were collected in order to examine the phylogenetic history and patterns of genetic variation in the Hawaiian hoary bat. The raw sequencing data are deposited t
Below are publications associated with this project.
Genetic diversity, structure, and effective population size of an endangered, endemic hoary bat, ʻōpeʻapeʻa, across the Hawaiian Islands
Island bat species are disproportionately at risk of extinction, and Hawaiʻi’s only native terrestrial land mammal, the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus semotus) locally known as ʻōpeʻapeʻa, is no exception. To effectively manage this bat species with an archipelago-wide distribution, it is important to determine the population size on each island and connectivity between islands. We used 18 nuclear m
Authors
Corinna Pinzari, Mona Renee Bellinger, Donald K. Price, Frank J Bonaccorso
Analysis of genomic sequence data reveals the origin and evolutionary separation of Hawaiian hoary bat populations
We examine the genetic history and population status of Hawaiian hoary bats (Lasiurus semotus), the most isolated bats on Earth, and their relationship to northern hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus), through whole-genome analysis of single-nucleotide polymorphisms mapped to a de novo-assembled reference genome. Profiles of genomic diversity and divergence indicate that Hawaiian hoary bats are distinct
Authors
Corinna A. Pinzari, Lin Kang, Pawel Michalak, Lars S Jermiin, Donald K Price, Frank Bonaccorso
A test of sex specific genetic markers in the Hawaiian hoary bat and relevance to population studies
We tested the utility of a protocol using genetic markers that previously proved successful to identify the sex of Vespertilionid bats on tissues collected from live bats and carcasses of varying age from the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus). This molecular method is based on genes unique to X and Y chromosomes in mammals and previously was used successfully on North American hoary b
Authors
Corinna A. Pinzari, Frank Bonaccorso
Two tickets to paradise: multiple dispersal events in the founding of hoary bat populations in Hawai'i
The Hawaiian islands are an extremely isolated oceanic archipelago, and their fauna has long served as models of dispersal in island biogeography. While molecular data have recently been applied to investigate the timing and origin of dispersal events for several animal groups including birds, insects, and snails, these questions have been largely unaddressed in Hawai'i's only native terrestrial m
Authors
Amy L. Russell, Corinna A. Pinzari, Maarten J. Vonhof, Kevin J. Olival, Frank Bonaccorso
The Hawaiian Hoary Bat (Lasiurus semotus) or ʻōpeʻapeʻa is the only extant land mammal native to the Hawaiian archipelago and is listed as endangered due to apparent population declines, and a lack of knowledge concerning its distribution, abundance, and habitat needs. This study is designed to apply molecular techniques to document demographic information, assess genetic variability, describe population structure for bat populations across the state of Hawaiְ‘i, and provide accurate sexing information for bat fatalities at wind facilities.
Objectives:
Collect bat tissue for DNA analysis and sex genotyping
- Obtain samples from existing USGS collection, specimens submitted by wind facilities, Federal and State agencies, and live bats captured during concurrent projects
- Increase geographic coverage of bats where possible using field captures and recovered specimens
- Extract and preserve high-quality DNA for molecular studies
Determine population structure of Hawaiian hoary bats across the archipelago using traditional genetic and next generation genomic techniques
- Sequence the CO1 mitochondrial DNA region for 250+ bats using Sanger sequencing
- Test and amplify up to 20 microsatellite markers for 250+ individuals using fragment analysis
- Sequence high-quality bat samples using next generation genomic techniques, construct a reference genome for the Hawaiian hoary bat, and generate a library of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)
- Analyze population level genetic diversity and associated parameters, maternal and nuclear inter- and intra-island population structure, and estimate rates and direction of potential gene flow
- Analyze SNPs to detect regions of genomic divergence, potential selection, diversity, and population structure
Estimate historical and current effective sizes and past bottlenecks for island populations on Oahu, Maui, and Hawai‘i
- Utilize mitochondrial and microsatellite data to produce estimates of historical female and contemporary effective population sizes
- Test for presence of past bottlenecks, and recent population expansions and contractions
- Estimate effective population sizes utilizing genomic markers such as SNPs
Test and utilize a simple genetic method to determine the sex of Hawaiian hoary bats collected from local wind facilities
- Determine male and female genotypes from over 100 individuals
- Verify genetic sex determination method for Hawaiian hoary bats by utilizing samples from known sex individuals and applied to carcasses of unknown sex
Below are data associated with this project.
Hawaiian hoary bat population genetics 1988 to 2020
Genetic diversity levels, effective population size estimates, and population structure of the endangered Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus semotus, also known as Aeorestes semotus) were examined across the islands of Hawai‘i, Maui, O‘ahu, and Kaua‘i using eighteen nuclear microsatellite loci and one mitochondrial gene from 339 individuals collected between 1988 and 2020. The study extracted DNA for po
Hawaiian Islands Hawaiian Hoary Bat Genetic Sexing 2009-2020 (ver. 6.0, January 2021)
We tested the utility of a protocol using genetic markers that previously proved successful to identify the sex of Vespertilionid bats on tissues collected from live bats and carcasses of varying age from the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus). This molecular method is based on genes unique to X and Y chromosomes in mammals and previously was used successfully on North American hoary b
Hawaiian Islands Hawaiian hoary bat samples, genome assembly, and SNP genotypes, 2009-2015
This dataset features tissue collection information, reference genome assembly, and single nucleotide polymorphisim (SNP) genotypes of 23 Hawaiian hoary bats collected across four Hawaiian Islands, Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, and Kauai. These data were collected in order to examine the phylogenetic history and patterns of genetic variation in the Hawaiian hoary bat. The raw sequencing data are deposited t
Below are publications associated with this project.
Genetic diversity, structure, and effective population size of an endangered, endemic hoary bat, ʻōpeʻapeʻa, across the Hawaiian Islands
Island bat species are disproportionately at risk of extinction, and Hawaiʻi’s only native terrestrial land mammal, the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus semotus) locally known as ʻōpeʻapeʻa, is no exception. To effectively manage this bat species with an archipelago-wide distribution, it is important to determine the population size on each island and connectivity between islands. We used 18 nuclear m
Authors
Corinna Pinzari, Mona Renee Bellinger, Donald K. Price, Frank J Bonaccorso
Analysis of genomic sequence data reveals the origin and evolutionary separation of Hawaiian hoary bat populations
We examine the genetic history and population status of Hawaiian hoary bats (Lasiurus semotus), the most isolated bats on Earth, and their relationship to northern hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus), through whole-genome analysis of single-nucleotide polymorphisms mapped to a de novo-assembled reference genome. Profiles of genomic diversity and divergence indicate that Hawaiian hoary bats are distinct
Authors
Corinna A. Pinzari, Lin Kang, Pawel Michalak, Lars S Jermiin, Donald K Price, Frank Bonaccorso
A test of sex specific genetic markers in the Hawaiian hoary bat and relevance to population studies
We tested the utility of a protocol using genetic markers that previously proved successful to identify the sex of Vespertilionid bats on tissues collected from live bats and carcasses of varying age from the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus). This molecular method is based on genes unique to X and Y chromosomes in mammals and previously was used successfully on North American hoary b
Authors
Corinna A. Pinzari, Frank Bonaccorso
Two tickets to paradise: multiple dispersal events in the founding of hoary bat populations in Hawai'i
The Hawaiian islands are an extremely isolated oceanic archipelago, and their fauna has long served as models of dispersal in island biogeography. While molecular data have recently been applied to investigate the timing and origin of dispersal events for several animal groups including birds, insects, and snails, these questions have been largely unaddressed in Hawai'i's only native terrestrial m
Authors
Amy L. Russell, Corinna A. Pinzari, Maarten J. Vonhof, Kevin J. Olival, Frank Bonaccorso