ScienceDaily (Oct. 19, 2012) —
Scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society, the American Museum of
Natural History, City University of New York, and other organizations have
published the first range-wide genetic analysis of the bowhead whale using
hundreds of samples from both modern populations and archaeological sites used
by indigenous Arctic hunters thousands of years ago.
In addition to using DNA samples
collected from whales over the past 20 years, the team collected genetic
samples from ancient specimens -- extracted from old vessels, toys, and housing
material made from baleen -- preserved in pre-European settlements in the
Canadian Arctic. The study attempts to shed light on the impacts of sea ice and
commercial whaling on this threatened but now recovering species. The study
appears in the most recent edition of Ecology and Evolution.
"Our study represents the first
genetic analysis of bowheads across their entire range," said Elizabeth
Alter, the study's lead author and now a professor at City University of New
York.
"The study also illustrates the value of ancient DNA in answering
questions about the impact of changing climate and human exploitation on
genetic diversity in bowhead whales."
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