Embargoed until:
Publicly released:
2024-08-07 09:01
Dugong numbers have been declining for a thousand years, and those in the western Indian Ocean have recently lost genetic diversity. A new study of ancient DNA from dugong specimens in museums has mapped their genetic diversity in the Indo-Pacific, and modelled their past populations. The authors say global dugong populations are becoming fragmented and less diverse, putting them at increasing risk from human activities and climate change. Greater understanding of their global populations could identify particularly vulnerable groups for conservation priority.
Journal/conference: Royal Society Open Science
Link to research (DOI): 10.1098/rsos.240599
Organisation/s: University of Auckland, University of Oslo, Norway
Funder: This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s
Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (4-OCEANS, grant agreement no. 951649)
Media release
From: The Royal Society
Dugongs have been of cultural and economic importance in the Indo-Pacific region for millennia yet are exposed to a multitude of human threats. Nonetheless, we lack an understanding of their population structure, preventing the identification of vulnerable populations for conservation priority. Analysing ancient DNA from historic specimens, we report significant population structure across the entire dugong range. We discover that western dugongs have 10-fold lower levels of genetic variation compared to eastern dugongs and that this diversity has been declining during the 20th century. Our results show that dugong populations are becoming increasingly susceptible to human impacts and climate change.
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