Genetic diversity and complex structure of the European Roe Deer population at a continental scale.

This article focuses on the large-scale population genetic structure of the European Roe Deer (Capreolus capreolus) across Europe using nuclear DNA data from 12 microsatellite loci analyzed in 920 samples from 16 sites spanning northern, southern, central, and eastern Europe. The study identified two main genetic populations: one primarily in Fennoscandia and another across continental Europe, with the latter further subdivided into 3 to 5 genetic clusters. The Baltic Sea was found to be the primary barrier to gene flow between these populations, while additional lower-level barriers exist in western, southern, and eastern Europe. Genetic diversity was highest in central and eastern Europe and lowest in northern and southern peripheral regions, patterns attributed mainly to postglacial recolonization from multiple Last Glacial Maximum refugia and historical isolation. Although mitochondrial DNA studies show introgression from the Siberian Roe Deer (Capreolus pygargus) in eastern Europe, this was not strongly reflected in nuclear microsatellite data, suggesting limited nuclear gene flow between the species.