Tasmanian devils face a combination of threats to persistence, including devil facial tumor disease (DFTD), an epidemic transmissible cancer. We used RAD sequencing to investigate genome-wide patterns of genetic diversity and geographic population structure. Consistent with previous results, we found very low genetic diversity in the species as a whole, and we detected two broad genetic clusters occupying the northwestern portion of the range, and the central and eastern portions. However, these two groups overlap across a broad geographic area, and differentiation between them is modest (F_ST = 0.1081). Our results refine the geographic extent of the zone of mixed ancestry and substructure within it, potentially informing management of genetic variation that existed in pre-diseased populations of the species. DFTD has spread across both genetic clusters, but recent evidence points to a genomic response to selection imposed by DFTD. Any allelic variation for resistance to DFTD may be able to spread across the devil population under selection by DFTD, and/or be present as standing variation in both genetic regions.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	conservation genomics, devil facial tumor disease, gene flow, population bottlenecks, RAD sequencing, transmissible cancer
Research Division:	Environmental Sciences
Research Group:	Environmental management
Research Field:	Conservation and biodiversity
Objective Division:	Environmental Management
Objective Group:	Terrestrial systems and management
Objective Field:	Terrestrial biodiversity
UTAS Author:	Schonfeld, B (Dr Barbara Schonfeld)
UTAS Author:	Hamede, R (Dr Rodrigo Hamede Ross)
UTAS Author:	Jones, M (Professor Menna Jones)
ID Code:	116758
Year Published:	2017
Web of Science® Times Cited:	38
Deposited By:	Zoology
Deposited On:	2017-05-19
Last Modified:	2018-05-08
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