Genetic diversity and population history of the red panda (Ailurus fulgens) as inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequence variations

The red panda (Ailurus fulgens) is one of the flagship species in worldwide conservation and is of special interest in evolutionary studies due to its taxonomic uniqueness. We sequenced a 236-bp fragment of the mitochondrial D-loop region in a sample of 53 red pandas from two populations in southwes tern China. Seventeen polymorphic sites were found, together with a total o f 25 haplotypes, indicating a high level of genetic diversity in the red pa nda. However, no obvious genetic divergence was detected between the Sichua n and Yunnan populations. The consensus phylogenetic tree of the 25 haploty pes was starlike. The pairwise mismatch distribution fitted into a pattern of populations undergoing expansion. Furthermore, Fu's Fs test of neutralit y was significant for the total population (F-S = -7.573), which also sugge sts a recent population expansion. Interestingly, the effective population size in the Sichuan population was both larger and more stable than that in the Yunnan population, implying a southward expansion from Sichuan to Yunn an.