Big cat vcf files from: Exceedingly low genetic diversity in snow leopards due to persistently small population size

Snow leopards (Panthera uncia) serve as an umbrella species whose
conservation benefits their high-elevation Asian habitat. Their numbers
are believed to be in decline due to numerous Anthropogenic threats;
however, their conservation is hindered by numerous knowledge gaps. In
particular, the dearth of genetic data, unique among all big cat species,
hinders a full understanding of their population structure, historical
population size, and current levels of genetic diversity. Here, we use
whole-genome sequencing data for 41 snow leopards (37 newly sequenced) to
offer new insights into these unresolved aspects of snow leopard biology.
Among our samples, we find evidence of a primary genetic divide between
the northern and southern part of the range around the Dzungarian Basin–as
previously identified using landscape models and fecal microsatellite
markers–and a secondary divide south of Kyrgyzstan around the Taklamakan
Desert. Most noteworthy, we find that snow leopards have the lowest
genetic diversity of any big cat species, likely due to a persistently
small population size throughout their evolutionary history rather than
recent inbreeding. We also find that snow leopards have significantly less
highly deleterious homozygous load compared to numerous Panthera species,
suggesting effective purging during their evolutionary history at small
population sizes. Without a large population size or ample standing
genetic variation to help buffer them from any forthcoming Anthropogenic
challenges, snow leopard persistence may be more tenuous than currently
appreciated.