| Title | DNA barcoding and the documentation of alien species establishment on sub-antarctic Marion Island |
| Author | Chown, S.L.; Sinclair, B.J.; van Vuuren, B.J. |
| Author Affil | Chown, S.L., Stellenbosch University, Department of Botany and Zoology, Matieland, South Africa. Other: University of Western Ontario, Canada |
| Source | Polar Biology, 31(5), p.651-655, . Publisher: Springer-Verlag, Berlin, Federal Republic of Germany. ISSN: 0722- 4060 |
| Publication Date | Apr. 2008 |
| Notes | In English. 33 refs. GeoRef Acc. No: 284589 |
| Index Terms | Indian Ocean Islands--Marion Island; Arthropoda; biogeography; DNA; ecology; ecosystems; genetics; Indian Ocean Islands; Insecta; Invertebrata; Mandibulata; Marion Island; subantarctic regions |
| Abstract | Invasive alien species constitute a substantial conservation challenge in the terrestrial sub-Antarctic. Management plans, for many of the islands in the region, call for the prevention, early detection, and management of such alien species. However, such management may be confounded by difficulties of identification of immatures, especially of holometabolous insects. Here we show how a DNA barcoding approach has helped to overcome such a problem associated with the likely establishment of an alien moth species on Marion Island. The discovery of unidentifiable immatures of a noctuid moth species, 5 km from the research station, suggested that a new moth species had colonized the island. Efforts to identify the larvae by conventional means or by rearing to the adult stage failed. (mod. journ. abst.) |
| URL | http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s00300-007-0402-z |
| Publication Type | journal article |
| Record ID | 84130 |