TY - JOUR
T1 - The genomic impact of population connectivity and decline in Africa’s elephants
AU - Pečnerová, Patrícia
AU - Ishida, Yasuko
AU - Garcia-Erill, Genís
AU - Bertola, Laura D.
AU - Santander, Cindy G.
AU - Liu, Xiaodong
AU - Brüniche-Olsen, Anna
AU - Khan, Anubhab
AU - Hennelly, Lauren M.
AU - Balboa, Renzo F.
AU - Lin, Long
AU - Rasmussen, Malthe S.
AU - Wang, Xi
AU - Schubert, Mikkel
AU - Al-Chaer, Amal
AU - Urbaniak, Sylwia
AU - Nobuta, Kan
AU - Treadup, Sasha
AU - Viaud-Martinez, Karine A.
AU - de Flamingh, Alida
AU - Malhi, Ripan S.
AU - Bird, Savanah
AU - Ting, Nelson
AU - Watsa, Mrinalini
AU - Tchamba, Martin N.
AU - Bourgeois, Stéphanie
AU - Thouless, Chris
AU - Douglas-Hamilton, Iain
AU - Wittemyer, George
AU - Van Coeverden de Groot, Peter J.
AU - Muwanika, Vincent B.
AU - Masembe, Charles
AU - Georgiadis, Nicholas J.
AU - Hvilsom, Christina
AU - Heller, Rasmus
AU - Siegismund, Hans Redlef
AU - Roca, Alfred L.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2026.
PY - 2026/12
Y1 - 2026/12
N2 - African elephants are keystone species facing severe declines due to the ivory trade and habitat loss. To investigate the genomic consequences, we analyze 232 high-coverage genomes from 17 African countries in the first continent-wide genomic analysis treating savanna (Loxodonta africana) and forest (L. cyclotis) elephants as distinct species. We find a deep divergence between species, with forest elephants showing higher heterozygosity and historically larger effective population sizes, while savanna elephants exhibit greater inbreeding and genetic load. Surprisingly, we detect widespread introgression of trace forest ancestry across savanna populations, suggesting a complex history of hybridization. Within species, historically high mobility promoted genetic connectivity, though we identify signs of human-induced isolation and drift in peripheral populations. Our findings highlight gene flow as a key force in African elephant evolution and underscore the urgency of understanding the impact of accelerating habitat fragmentation in these ecosystem engineers.
AB - African elephants are keystone species facing severe declines due to the ivory trade and habitat loss. To investigate the genomic consequences, we analyze 232 high-coverage genomes from 17 African countries in the first continent-wide genomic analysis treating savanna (Loxodonta africana) and forest (L. cyclotis) elephants as distinct species. We find a deep divergence between species, with forest elephants showing higher heterozygosity and historically larger effective population sizes, while savanna elephants exhibit greater inbreeding and genetic load. Surprisingly, we detect widespread introgression of trace forest ancestry across savanna populations, suggesting a complex history of hybridization. Within species, historically high mobility promoted genetic connectivity, though we identify signs of human-induced isolation and drift in peripheral populations. Our findings highlight gene flow as a key force in African elephant evolution and underscore the urgency of understanding the impact of accelerating habitat fragmentation in these ecosystem engineers.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105035818738
U2 - 10.1038/s41467-026-71262-w
DO - 10.1038/s41467-026-71262-w
M3 - 文章
C2 - 41991514
AN - SCOPUS:105035818738
SN - 2041-1723
VL - 17
JO - Nature Communications
JF - Nature Communications
IS - 1
M1 - 3223
ER -