A preliminary assessment of population genetic structure of the common vampire bat (<i>Desmodus rotundus</i>) in Colombia.

Abstract

Rabies virus (RABV) is a neglected tropical pathogen in Latin America predominantly transmitted to mammals by the common vampire bat (<i>Desmodus rotundus</i>). Transmission of RABV among <i>D. rotundus</i> individuals and colonies is a function of individual dispersal between colonies, patterns of which can be inferred from population genetic structure. Nevertheless, a baseline assessment of population genetic structure among <i>D. rotundus</i> individuals has been lacking for some areas of South America, including Colombia, where RABV has impacted some areas more heavily than others. To assess individual dispersal and hence population structure of <i>D. rotundus</i> across heterogenous landscapes in Colombia, we conducted a cross-elevational assessment of population genetic variation using nuclear microsatellite DNA markers. We quantified genetic variance and geographic distribution of genetically clustered <i>D. rotundus</i> individuals across the landscape of Colombia with reference to a comparator group of individuals from Mexico. We found population-level differentiation and genetic structure within our collection of samples, and we inferred patterns of dispersal and genetically effective migration between <i>D. rotundus</i> populations. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) showed considerable variation among inferred populations in Colombia (14.9% of genetic covariance, df = 2, Sum of Squares = 164.9, Sigma = 1.28, <i>ϕ</i> = 0.15, p = 0.01), with an associated <i>G</i>'_ST of 0.34. Direct migrant identification suggested 15 likely first-generation migrants among sites. We found that there were no statistically significant differences between the landscapes occupied by the inferred populations, though our limited sampling size suggests a trend toward differences in relation to elevation (<i>t</i> = 1.91, df = 71.72, <i>p</i> = 0.06). These results indicate that <i>D. rotundus</i> is mobile within the region, potentially contributing to RABV transmission among colonies. Our results support previous hypotheses ecological resistance-mediated patterns of dispersal for <i>D. rotundus</i>, and inform future research on the role of genetic connectivity in RABV transmission among bat colonies.