Genetic diversity of mute swan population of the Riga Urban Area

Mute swan Cygnus olor is the most abundant breeding swan species in Riga and Latvia. Since manmade habitats are the preferred breeding habitats of this species - Cygnus olor is of particular interest in studies of urban biodiversity. The latest records show that 30-40 pairs breed annually in Riga, 400-700 individuals migrate through the area, and 120-150 individuals stay over winter. The goal of our study was to determine the genetic variation of the mute swan population in Riga. Blood samples were collected from 47 individual birds found in different sites in Riga or elsewhere in Latvia. The universal retrotransposon based iPBS markers were used to estimate diversity. Three primers (2076, 2080, and 2415) amplified 64 DNA fragments; of these 18 (28%) were polymorphic. The average diversity index based on polymorphic markers for the studied individuals was 0.425. All individuals, with the exception of two pairs of individuals, could be separated by means of these markers. The grouping of individuals was not be associated with their sampling location, gender and age. The genetic diversity indexes were compared between these groups. The breeding individuals (including their cygnets) had bands not showing variation among breeding birds as compared to the not breeding ones.