NON-INVASIVE MOLECULAR TECHNIQUES FOR CONSERVATION GENETICS OF ENDANGERED SPECIES

Abstract

Non invasive molecular technique is relatively new data collection approach and opens new ways by which free ranging animal are being studied. Researchers can obtain DNA from variety of sources including hair, feces, urine, feathers saliva and egg shells without handling or observing animals. It is particularly preferred to use in identify species, individual, determining gender, identify parentage, asses’ population genetic structure, inter specific phylogeny and phylogeography. We developed simple and efficient method for molecular studies from shed skin of snakes in population of Indian snakes (Ptyas mucosus, Bungarus caeruleus, Naja naja). This sampling technique is fast, simple, inexpensive and non invasive to individuals. The high quality of DNA was isolated from the samples. These result shows that shed skin of snakes as a non invasive sampling represents source of DNA for conservation genetics of endangered animals and genetic diversity at large.
KEY WORDS- Non-invasive, molecular techniques, genetic diversity, endangered species, conservation genetics.