2021 Volume 61 Issue 2 Pages 303-310
Landscape genetics was proposed in 2003 as a discipline to examine the effect of spatial patterns of habitat on the genetic diversity of wildlife populations. It aims to clarify the effects of landscape characteristics on genetic structure and to clarify ecological processes using genetic data. In conventional population genetics, one of the major objectives is to verify the effect of isolation-by-distance (IBD), but in landscape genetics, the effect of landscape factors on isolation-by-resistance (IBR) and isolation-by-barrier (IBB) is examined. For the black bear, farmland and residential area functioned 25-times as much as resistance. In addition, the influence of topography was also detected. In the Asian black bear, the difference in elevation and the degree of undulation between individuals affected the gene flow rather than the elevation. IBB did not have any effects. Our genetic data suggested sexually dimorphic patterns of behavior exist in the Asian Black Bear, corroborating findings previously reported using landscape ecological methods. Landscape genetics is expected to shift from population-based analysis to individual-based analysis. In addition to genetic analysis technology, knowledge of spatial analysis, and statistics is required; therefore, cooperation between different fields will be necessary.
