GENETIC VARIABILITY OF NORTHERN WHITE-BREASTED HEDGEHOG (Erinaceus roumanicus) FROM SERBIA

Northern white-breasted hedgehog ( Erinaceus roumanicus ) is a small mammal distributed in eastern Europe and Ponto-Mediterranean region. Since genetic variability underpins a populations long-term potential for survival and adaptation, the aim of this study was to estimate genetic diversity in E. roumanicus population from Serbia. Partial fragment of mtDNA control region was amplified and sequenced for 74 road killed individuals. In total, 12 haplotypes were detected with haplotype diversity Hd=0.827±0.001, nucleotide diversity π=0.0036 and average number of nucleotide differences k=1.490. Spatial clustering of individuals based on the mtDNA variability indicated presence of three groups named approximately after sampling localities as eastern (E), south-central (SC) and southwestern-western-central (SWC) group, with haplotype and nucleotide diversity respectively as follow: Hd=0.733±0.024, π=0.0034; Hd=0.897±0.003, π=0.0045; Hd=0.725±0.002, π=0.0030. AMOVA further supported genetic differentiation (F ST =0.148, p=0.002), even though the most of the variability is due to the within group variation. Eastern group showed higher genetic differentiation (E-SWC F ST =0.221; E-SC F ST =0.192), while F ST value between SC and SWC was 0.106. No shared haplotypes are found between E and two other groups, in contrast to 5 shared of 7 detected in both SC and SWC groups. Mismatch distribution was unimodal, with insignificant SSD values supporting a pattern of demographic expansion, while none of the neutrality tests (Fu’s Fs and Tajima’s D) was significant, both yielded negative values, except for the group E. The results of this study indicate a moderate genetic diversity and signal of population expansion in E. roumanicus from Serbia.