Rubik for Presentations:
1-Must have a MINIMUM of 2 genetic papers. (Not population papers)
2 -Data from genetics papers must be presented in either a table or graph in the student’s presentation
3-Student presented references (papers and photos)
4-Student is knowledable about the data he/she is presenting
Because of our cu
ent situation for this I would recommend you use the notes section under the slides for extra info, comments, concerns.
5- Students provided the IUCN status
6-Student added to the research -"What would I do?"
7-Student was able to present his/her presentation in a clear and concise manner (I get the information without you presenting it) You can put in on the slide or in the notes section.
8- Reference slide
****** Please look at the Tasmanian Devil presentation*******
PowerPoint Presentation
Tasmanian Devil
(Sarcophilus ha
isii)
In the literature, the scientific name Sarcophilus laniarius. Although that name is largely relegated to fossil species found on the Australian mainland. There was a push to adopt the alternate name that did not amount to much.
1
Background
Largest extant carnivore marsupial
Found only on Tasmania – completely gone from the Australian mainland ~5000 ya
Before Thylacine went extinct, Devils and Thylacines would often predate each others’ young
Description
Thick, squat build with black fur with a white stripe across the chest
Males ~ 26in, 18lbs;
Females ~ 22in, 13lbs
Live 5-6 years (as much as 8 in captivity)
Ecology
Competition between Thylacines and Tasmanian Devils is thought to have contributed to the fluctuating numbers of both species.
Tasmanian Devils ended up winning the PR war however.
2
Behavio
Common name because of their vocalization and aggressive feeding and mating behaviors
Primarily solitary, however a radio tagged study concluded that Devils in a region actually form a loose contact network
Nocturnal (juveniles tend to be crepuscular)
Habitat
Found in all environments on Tasmania, but prefer dry sclerophyll forest and coastal heaths
Live in 3-4 bu
ows (esp. old wombat bu
ows)
Ecology
Despite the Tasmanian Devil’s fierce posturing and vocalization, they primarily use them establish dominance among themselves. Usually when face with human, they are scared and use these mechanisms to appear frightening.
White stripe across chest and rump is thought to make it easier to see each other at night.
Devils are not usually found at high altitudes. They can be found even around the edges of subu
an areas and ranches where ca
ion is likely to be found.
3
Diet
Carnivores but primarily consume ca
ion
Favor wombats and meat with high fat content
Hunt alone, but often eat communally (groups of 2-5 most common)
Most dominant eats first and until sated
Reproduction
Promiscuous; average 4 mating seasons
Females are fertile once/year for ~3wks
Reach sexual maturity ~2yrs
Gestation last ~21days
Gives birth to 20-30 young; first four to the nipple remain attached in the pouch ~100 days
Once ejected form the pouch, young remain outside; remain in mother’s care ~9mo total
Ecology
They do not run particularly quickly so cannot outrun kangaroos
Known to forage corpses.
Females do show some sexual selection. Males will guard a female with whom they have mated against other males.
Rear-facing pouch
Although the female has 4 nipples, litters are usually 2-3. Most pups survive until weaned, there is a high juvenile mortality.
4
Genetic Diversity: Jones, et al. 2004
Authors’ Conclusions:
Heterozygosity (0.386–0.467) and allelic diversity (2.7– 3.3) were low in all subpopulations and allelic size ranges were small and almost continuous, consistent with a founder effect.
Although DFTD had arisen by this point, it was not yet the focus of genetics papers at this time.
This study involved 11 microsatellite loci.
5
Devil Facial Tumor Disease (DFTD)
In 1996, a photographer in Mt William noticed a Tasmanian Devil with facial tumors
It was not until 2003 that the population had declined enough and that DFTD had been found in a significant amount of the population that it was recognized as both a problem and reason for the decline.
Transmissible cancer; allograft transfe
ed by bite
DFTD is 100% fatal
No known treatment, prevention, or cure
Starts as a growth around mouth
Death occurs within 6 months
Devil populations had historically had noticeable fluctuations in the past. Since mid-20th century, the Devil numbers had rebounded until the appearance of DFTD.
6
Devil dies either because it is no longer able to eat or because cancer metastasizes to organs and causes multi-system organ failure
7
DFTD: Research & Evolution
After emergence of DFTD, scientists originally thought it was a herpes-like virus
In 2006, it was determined that tumors were allografts
2 disparate tumor strains identified: DFTD-1 and DFTD-2
DFTD-1 is a clonal tumor that originated from a female
DFTD-2 is a clonal tumor that originated from a male
MHC I molecules are downregulated on the surface of tumors
Treatment with IFN-y upregulates PD-L1
Most Tasmanian Devil research post-2006 is related to DFTD and the captive populations.
It was thought that the Devil was so in
ed that it was not recognizing the allograft tumor as non-self. It turns out that, while there is a significant amount of in
eeding in Devil populations, the Devil immune system is sufficiently robust to mount an immune response.
The DFTD does not express MHC I. When treated with IFN-y, PD-1 is upregulated. Therefore, the immune system is blind to the tumor, and it is allowed to proliferate.
Y chromosome loss from a male clone infecting a female host suggests immunoediting. These results imply that Tasmanian devils may have inherent susceptibility to transmissible cancers and present a suite of therapeutic compounds for use in conservation.
8
Genetic Diversity: Lachish, et al. 2010
Author Conclusions:
- Significant increase in in
eeding:
FIS pre/post-disease
-0.030/0.012, P<0.05; relatedness pre/post-disease 0.011/0.038, P=0.06) after just 2–3 generations of disease a
ival, but no detectable change in genetic diversity.
No subdivision apparent among pre-disease populations (θ=0.005, (CI) −0.003 to 0.017
Significant genetic differentiation among populations post-disease (θ=0.020, (CI) 0.010–0.027),
 N A HO HE
Little Swanport (2004) 36 3.2 0.418 0.408
Freycinet (2004) 61 3.2 0.427 0.419
Pawleena (2004) 40 3.2 0.402 0.410
This study involved 10 microsatellite loci.
Results show that disease can result in genetic and demographic changes in host populations over few generations and short time scales. Ongoing management of Tasmanian devils must now attempt to maintain genetic variability in this species through actions designed to reverse the detrimental effects of in
eeding and subdivision in disease-affected populations.
9
IUCN Status and Interpretation
http:
www.iucnredlist.org/details/40540/0
Cu
ent Status: Endangered
Last Assessed: June 2008
Justification: A2be+3e
Population reduction > 50% over 10 years
(based on direct observation and due to the effects of a pathogen)
Population reduction > 50% over the next 10 years
(due to the effects of a pathogen)
Interpretation:
Although the Tasmanian Devil has gone through historical fluctuations, the cu
ent and future population reductions are almost exclusively due to the emergence of DFTD
Link to IUCN page for Sarcophilus ha
isii.
Some regions have experienced population reductions >90%. It is predicted that these areas will be the first to see local extinctions.
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Conservation Recommendations
There is evidence that females are maturing earlier.
Percentage of
eeding 1-year-old females has increased exponentially, while percentage of
eeding 3-year-old females has decreased
Culling diseased Devils is not a viable option, so disease-free insurance populations have been established
Most notable is Maria Island
Captive populations are monitored to ensure that close relatives are not inte
eeding
Sustained road sign campaign for drivers to exercise caution
Most importantly, research into treatment of effected Devils and vaccine for unaffected Devil populations
Insurance populations are disease free: may be zoo populations or wildlife reserves.
Because Devils prefer ca
ion, roadkill continues to be a problem
Signs read:
Healthy ecosystems depend on carnivores to keep things clean
Roadkill makes a good meal, but devils get killed too
Dusk to dawn
Healthy individuals from insurance populations cannot be released into the wild until DFTD can be treated/prevented.
11
References
Academic Papers Regarding Conservation Genetics
Jones, M. E., Paetkau, D., Geffen, E., & Moritz, C XXXXXXXXXXGenetic diversity and population structure of Tasmanian devils, the largest marsupial carnivore. Molecular Ecology, 13(8), XXXXXXXXXXdoi:10.1111/j.1365-294x XXXXXXXXXXx
Lachish, S., Miller, K. J., Storfer, A., Goldizen, A. W., & Jones, M. E XXXXXXXXXXEvidence that disease-induced population decline changes genetic structure and alters dispersal patterns in the Tasmanian devil. Heredity,106(1), XXXXXXXXXXdoi:10.1038/hdy XXXXXXXXXX
Other Academic Papers
Epstein, B., Jones, M., Hamede, R., Hendricks, S., Mccallum, H., Murchison, E. P., . . . Storfer, A XXXXXXXXXXRapid evolutionary response to a transmissible cancer in Tasmanian devils. Nature Communications, 7, XXXXXXXXXXdoi:10.1038/ncomms12684
Stammnitz, M. R., Coorens, T. H., Gori, K. C., Hayes, D., Fu, B., Wang, J., . . . Murchison, E. P XXXXXXXXXXThe Origins and Vulnerabilities of Two Transmissible Cancers in Tasmanian Devils. Cancer Cell, 33(4), XXXXXXXXXXdoi:10.1016/j.ccell XXXXXXXXXX
Flies, A. S., Lyons, A. B., Corcoran, L. M., Papenfuss, A. T., Murphy, J. M., Knowles, G. W., . . . Hayball, J. D XXXXXXXXXXPD-L1 Is Not Constitutively Expressed on Tasmanian Devil Facial Tumor Cells but Is Strongly Upregulated in Response to IFN-γ and Can Be Expressed in the Tumor Microenvironment. Frontiers in Immunology,7. doi:10.3389/fimmu XXXXXXXXXX
Jones, M. E., Cockburn, A., Hamede, R., Hawkins, C., Hesterman, H., Lachish, S., . . . Pemberton, D XXXXXXXXXXLife-history change in disease-ravaged Tasmanian devil populations. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,105(29), XXXXXXXXXXdoi:10.1073/pnas XXXXXXXXXX
Gooley, R., Hogg, C. J., Belov, K., & Grueber, C. E XXXXXXXXXXNo evidence of in
eeding depression in a Tasmanian devil insurance population despite significant variation in in
eeding. Scientific Reports, 7(1). doi:10.1038/s XXXXXXXXXXy
Other Sources
Owen, D., & Pemberton, D. (2011). Tasmanian devil: A unique and threatened animal. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin.
http:
www.parks.tas.gov.au/?base=387
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References
Pictures
Westfall, S XXXXXXXXXXHell's Welcome Committee. Retrieved from https:
etrieverman.net/tag/tasmanian-devil/
Wu, C XXXXXXXXXXTasmanian Devil. Retrieved from https:
www.flickr.com/photos/nodust/ XXXXXXXXXX/in
Pham, J XXXXXXXXXXTasmanian Devil Brothers. Retrieved from http:
www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/
Heath, H XXXXXXXXXXTasmanian Devil Den. Retrieved from http:
www.heathholdenphotography.com/life-of-a-tasmanian-devil
Devil