Liv Guro Kvernstuen

• Flagstad, Øystein; Pradhan, Narendra Man Babu; Kvernstuen, Liv Guro & Wegge, Per (2012). Conserving small and fragmented populations of large mammals: Non-invasive genetic sampling in an isolated population of Asian elephants in Nepal. Journal for Nature Conservation. ISSN 1617-1381. 20(3), p. 181–190. doi: 10.1016/j.jnc.2012.01.006. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The Terai is one of the world’s most spectacular landscapes, encompassing parts of Nepal and northern India. This area used to harbour large and continuous populations of charismatic species like elephants, tigers and rhinoceros. However, recent habitat fragmentation reduced these populations into small, partially or completely isolated remnants. The largest of these fragments in Nepal is the Bardia National Park. Here, the elephant population was functionally extinct in the early 1970s and -80s, but was rescued by a considerable number of immigrants in 1994. In order to assess population size, sex ratio, age structure, and levels of genetic variation, we carried out non-invasive genetic sampling, using elephant dung as the source of DNA. A capture-mark-recapture estimate of population size suggested that there were 57 individuals in the study area, which agrees well with field observations. Notably, a strongly male-biased sex ratio was evident among sub-adult individuals. This observation suggests the presence of sub-adult immigrants in the population, which was supported by formal migrant detection analysis. Genetic variation was quite high and the evidence for male immigrants suggests that there are good prospects for maintenance of genetic diversity. A decade ago a large-scale project was initiated in the Terai region to link remaining populations of large mammals through dispersal corridors. The program is basically founded on the assumption that habitat fragments are isolated with little or no migration between them. Our results indicate that this may not be the case, at least not for the Asian elephant in western Nepal, which therefore reduces the alleged extinction risk from genetic erosion and stochastic demographic events.

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• Popp, Magnus; Ehrich, Dorothee; Kebede, Mulugeta; Assefa, Adane Terefe; Gizaw, Abel & Bekele, Biructawit [Show all 11 contributors for this article] (2008). Comparative phylogeography of afro-alpine plants inferred from AFLP and plastid DNA variation. Full text in Research Archive
• Assefa, Adane Terefe; Kvernstuen, Liv Guro; Ehrich, Dorothee; Taberlet, Pierre; Nemomissa, Sileshi & Brochmann, Christian (2007). Phylogeography of Salvia merjamie (Lamiaceae) based on AFLP data and its morphological variability in Ethiopian and Tropical East African Mountains. Full text in Research Archive

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