A panel of polymorphic microsatellites in the Blue Eared Pheasant (Crossoptilon auritum) developed by cross-species amplification

Bern, Switzerland Abstract Polymorphic microsatellites are among the versatile genetic markers in molecular ecology studies. In contrast to de novo isolation of microsatellites from target species, cross-species amplification is a cost-effective approach for a fast development of microsatellite markers from closely related taxa. In our study, we cross-amplified a panel of polymorphic microsatellite markers for the Blue Eared Pheasant ( Crossoptilon auritum ), a species endemic to China of considerable conservation con-cern. We obtained 11 polymorphic microsatellite markers selected from 112 candidate loci, originally isolated from other Galliforme species. This panel of makers has shown moderate to high levels of polymorphism and include a Z-chromosomal linkage locus. We carried out preliminary analyses of parentage among captive individuals with a known pedigree using this new panel of microsatellites. Our results suggest that the high utility of these markers may be powerful tools for studies in conservation genetics of eared-pheasants and other endangered