GENETIC-RELATIONSHIPS OF SOME GAZELLA SPECIES - AN ALLOZYME SURVEY

An allozyme comparison of eight taxa in the genus Gazella (Bovidae: Ar tiodactyla) was conducted to clarify the systematic relationships of e ndangered gazelles currently bred in Saudi Arabia for reintroduction. Electrophoretic variation at 16 genetic loci suggested that several si milar taxa of Arabian gazelles, namely G. gazella gazella, G. gazella erlangeri, G. gazella farasani, and G. gazella cora, belong to the sam e species of G. gazella sensu late. Four other species proved to have diverged genetically: G. thomsoni and G. dorcas, which cluster togethe r, G. rufifrons, and G. subgutturosa. The subgenus Trachelocele, in wh ich the latter species has been placed according to morphological char acteristics, is not supported. Polymorphism and heterozygosity values found in Gazella were generally similar to average values reported for mammals. The results are discussed in terms of the strategy to follow a conservation program that rake genetic data into account.