Des espèces non indigènes ont été transférées de leur aire d'origine vers de nouvelles aires géographiques par le biais du commerce des animaux de compagnie. The results from this study may help improve early surveillance for detecting the establishment of potential invasive avian species. Assessing the trade of avian species is essential for conservation and invasive species management. In addition, six of these 14 species were among the top 20 most traded and have been observed outside captivity in South Africa. Only 14 avian species have established populations outside captivity, with most associated with agricultural impact. Most species were listed as least concern (78%) and sold at lower prices, while threatened species were rarely available and sold at higher prices. The budgerigar Melopsittacus undulatus, zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata, and Fischer's lovebird Agapornis fischeri were the most available species recorded in all the provinces. Psittacidae (23%) and Estrildidae (20%) were the most available families. We recorded 169 avian species from 26 families, of which 147 were non‐natives. We reviewed the literature to determine which avian species have established populations outside captivity, including their impacts and clutch sizes. We surveyed 117 physical pet stores across South Africa between September 2018 and September 2019 to determine avian species composition, availability, price and IUCN status. Consequently, some become threatened with extinction, while some establish and become invasive.
Non‐native species have been translocated from their native to new geographic ranges through the pet trade. soemmeringii specific haplogroup by a newly designed Amplification-Refractory Mutation System (ARMS) can already provide support for conservation measures. We caution that subspecies assignments solely based on mtDNA should be treated carefully and argue for an additional standardized nuclear single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) marker set for subspecies identification and monitoring. Our analyses support previous findings that evolutionary forces such as incomplete lineage sorting or mitochondrial capture likely confound the mitochondrial phylogeography of this species, especially in East and, to some extent, in Northeast Africa. While our genetic data largely agree with geography-based subspecies assignments, several geographic regions show conflicting mtDNA signals.
Our dataset mostly consisted of historic samples to cover the cheetah’s whole range as the species has been extinct in most of its former distribution. Here, we investigated the cheetah's phylogeography using a large-scale mtDNA data set to refine subspecies distributions and better assign individuals to CUs. A commonly used marker in conservation genetics is mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA).
Genetic data is routinely used to inform conservation strategies, e.g., by establishing conservation units (CU). Evidence-based conservation measures are essential for the survival of this species. With the majority occurring outside protected areas, their numbers are rapidly declining. There are only about 7,100 adolescent and adult cheetahs remaining in the wild.