Application of Biochemical Genetics to Deer Management: What the Gels Tell

Since the first electrophoretic study of deer was reported in Nature in 1961, there have been over 100 papers published on the subject. Most of the early studies fall into two categories: (1) those surveying a few individuals from several species, generally utilizing blood samples from zoo animals, and (2) those examining many individuals from one or a few species, often using tissue samples obtained from carcasses during hunting seasons. The interspecific studies have identified several species-specific markers in proteins from serum and red blood cells. The cumulative results of the major intraspecific studies have revealed great differences in the amount of variation between species. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) are the most polymorphic species, while European fallow deer (Dama dama) and Pere David’s deer (Elaphurus davidianus) show the least variation. Where polymorphism has been found, usually it has indicated significant spatial and temporal differentiation; the gene frequency data verify that deer species are seldom panmictic. Using the standard measures of electrophoretic variation (average heterozygosity, percentage of polymorphic loci, and average number of alleles per locus), significant differences between populations within a species have also been widely reported. Most electrophoretic studies of deer have assumed that polymorphic loci are neutral in relation to natural selection; however, when there has been an attempt to test for selection, several parameters of fitness have been associated with variation at electrophoretic loci in white-tailed deer, red deer (Cervus elaphus), and reindeer. The intensification of deer management in the past decade has brought new genetic problems as well as the application of advanced biomedical techniques in addressing them. Plasma proteins, isozymes, and mitochondrial DNA have provided markers that document hybridization both in captive breeding programs and deer in the wild. Laboratories now conduct routine deer blood-typing. As deer genomes diverge, and some species receive increased protection while others are bred for commercial purposes, biochemical and molecular techniques are bound to have a growing role in deer management.