Characterization of highly polymorphic microsatellite markers for the chinese monal ( Lophophorus lhuysii , Galliformes) using Illumina MiSeq sequencing

Background The Chinese monal ( Lophophorus lhuysii , Galliformes) is a vulnerable and endemic bird from southwestern China. To better protect this species and increase its population size, genetic markers are urgently needed for investigation and conservation of both wild and captive populations. Methods and results By using next-generation sequencing, we developed and characterized markers for seven microsatellite loci of the Chinese monal. PCR examination and statistical analysis indicated that these microsatellites exhibited moderate to high levels of polymorphism, with the expected heterozygosity and polymorphic information content ranging from 0.578 to 0.858 and from 0.540 to 0.841, respectively. Cross-species genome comparison further suggests that these microsatellites are a feature of certain galliform species rather than being specific to the Chinese monal. Conclusion A combination of the seven highly polymorphic loci may provide a fundamental genetic toolkit to assess genetic backgrounds and will contribute to design conservation plan, breeding management and other possible studies of the Chinese monal and other evolutionarily related species in the future.