Common pandora (Pagellus erythrinus) is a benthopelagic marine fish belonging to the teleost family Sparidae, and a newly recruited species in Mediterranean aquaculture. The paucity of genetic information relating to sparids, despite their growing economic value for aquaculture, provides the impetus for exploring the genomics of this fish group. Genomic tool development, such as genetic linkage maps provision, lays the groundwork for linking the genotype to phenotype allowing fine-mapping of loci responsible for beneficial traits. In this study, we applied ddRAD methodology to identify polymorphic markers in a full-sib family of common pandora. Employing the Illumina MiSeq platform, we sampled and sequenced a size-selected genomic fraction of 99 individuals, which led to the identification of 920 polymorphic loci. Downstream mapping analysis resulted in the construction of 24 robust linkage groups, corresponding to the karyotype of the species. The common pandora linkage map showed varying degrees of conserved synteny with four other teleost genomes, namely the European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax), Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) and medaka (Oryzias latipes), suggesting a conserved genomic evolution in Sparidae. Our work exploits the possibilities of genotyping by sequencing to gain novel insights into genome structure and evolution. Such information will boost the study of cultured species and will set the ground for a deeper understanding of the complex evolutionary history of teleosts.

Identifying patterns of individual movements in spatial and temporal scales can provide valuable insight into the structure of populations and the dynamics of communities and ecosystems. Especially for migrating birds, that can face a variety of unfavorable conditions along their journey, resolving movements of individuals across their annual cycle is necessary in order to design better targeted conservation strategies. Here, we studied the movements of a small migratory falcon, the Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni), by genetically assigning feathers from individuals of unknown origin that concentrate in large roosts during the pre-migratory period. Our findings suggest that birds from multiple breeding populations in the Central and Eastern Mediterranean region move towards two pre-migratory sites in the Balkans, some of them detouring greatly from their expected flyways, travelling more than 500 km to reach these sites and prepare for the post-nuptial migration. By identifying the origin of individuals using the pre-migratory sites, not only we provide a better understanding of the possible impact of local threats at these sites on multiple breeding populations but also inform the design of effective conservation actions for the species.