A panel of polymorphic microsatellites in the Blue Eared Pheasant (Crossoptilon auritum) developed by cross-species amplification

Polymorphic microsatellites are among the versatile genetic markers in molecular ecology studies. In contrast to de novo isolation of microsatellites from target species, cross-species amplification is a cost-effective approach for a fast development of microsatellite markers from closely related taxa. In our study, we cross-amplified a panel of polymorphic microsatellite markers for the Blue Eared Pheasant (Crossoptilon auritum), a species endemic to China of considerable conservation concern. We obtained 11 polymorphic microsatellite markers selected from 112 candidate loci, originally isolated from other Galliforme species. This panel of makers has shown moderate to high levels of polymorphism and include a Z-chromosomal linkage locus. We carried out preliminary analyses of parentage among captive individuals with a known pedigree using this new panel of microsatellites. Our results suggest that the high utility of these markers may be powerful tools for studies in conservation genetics of eared-pheasants and other endangered Galliforme species.