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The genetic mating system is known for only a few species of owls. Most of them are genetically monogamous. The Lanyu scops owl Otus elegans botelensis breeds in high density in the forests of Lanyu (Orchid Island), southeast of Taiwan. Because extra-pair copulations (EPCs) have frequently been observed, we suspected a high degree of extra-pair fertilizations (EPFs). Through intensive field observations we quantified both within-pair and extra-pair copulations of this owl, and used a set of microsatellite loci to assign the parentage of 200 offspring from 108 families collected between 1999 and 2004. Among copulations for which we could identify both participants, 19.77% were EPC. However, no EPC was observed in the period just before egg laying. We found only two cases of parentage mismatch among 108 broods. The first case was most likely a case of brood usurpation, which would be the first case reported in the Strigidae. The second case was an EPF resulting in one offspring. Our study found that parentage mismatch in the Lanyu scops owls to be extremely low, therefore reproductive success can be estimated accurately by simply counting chicks in nests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From a partial genomic library enriched for GATA short tandem repeats,we developed 12 polymorphic microsatellite loci from the green-backed tit (Parus monticolus). We characterized these loci by genotyping 30 adult individuals with unknown relationship. The number of alleles ranged from four to 17 per locus (mean = 9.3 alleles) and the observed heterozygosity for each locus ranged from 0.633 to 0.933 (mean = 0.789). All loci conformed to Hardy-Weinberg expectations. Four of 66 possible pairwise comparisons between loci showed significant gametic disequilibrium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twelve tetra-repeated microsatellite loci were developed for the island-endemic grass lizard Takydromus formosanus (Squamata: Lacertidae). We characterized these loci by genotyping 51 individuals sampled from six localities. The number of alleles per locus ranged between 12 and 23, whereas the observed heterozygosity ranged between 0.686 and 0.941. None of these loci showed gametic disequilibrium or sex linkage. With such high polymorphism, we believe that these loci should be suitable for fine-scaled analysis of population structure, hybridizations or individual identification of grass lizards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eight new tetramicrosatellite loci for Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) were designed. Polymorphism of these eight loci in 29 otter individuals was tested. The results indicated that the allele numbers of each of loci ranged from three to five and the observed heterozygosity from 0.483 to 0.828. These new loci can be useful for population genetic research on otters and help improve the resolution of individual identification using noninvasive method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]