<div>Background: Despite conservationist&rsquo; efforts to safeguard natural resources, wildlife continues to disappear at an alarming rate around the world. This research focused on evaluating community perceptions and factors affecting wildlife conservation in Borana National Park in Southern Ethiopia. The study was conducted by the year 2020.&nbsp; 
 
Methods: Questionnaires, focus group discussions, key informant interviews and personal observation were utilized to collect data from 95 households. Quantitative data was compiled and presented in tables using a five-point rating scale with scores of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 correspondingly. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20 and transformed into frequency, percentages and mean.&nbsp; 
 
Result: Despite the abundance of wildlife and communities&rsquo; long-standing indigenous conservation practices, the study area faced challenges such as extreme resource competitions, human-wildlife conflicts, a lack of compensation, illegal hunting, settlement, variability and unfavorable weather conditions. Furthermore, invasive species expansion and increasing commercialization of wildlife products were feasible problems that require immediate attention in order to achieve sustainable wildlife resource development in the study area.</div>

Community Perceptions and Challenges to Wildlife Conservation, the Case of Borana National Park, Southern Ethiopia

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are the most abundant form of DNA polymorphismwhich can be used as simple genetic markers for many breeding applications as well as for population studies. SNPs in fecundity (Fec) genes viz. BMPR1B, GDF9 and BMP15 were genotyped in Indian goat breeds to assess their basic population parameters and genetic structuring, using simple and economical methods of PCR-RFLP and Tetra-primer ARMS PCR. Three hundred and ninety one animals of seven different goat breeds differing in prolificacy, utility and geographic distribution were employed for diversity assessment at six loci in these Fec genes. Four loci were polymorphic in all the breeds with varied allelic frequencies. Statistical analysis revealed that breeds differed with respect to genetic variability as observed heterozygosity varied from 0.163 (Ganjam) to 0.359 (Jakhrana). Sangamneri and Osmanabadi were least differentiated (0.003) whereas Jakhrana and Black Bengal were most differentiated (0.048) on the basis of genetic distance. The genetic distance as well as PCA analysis indicated that breeds are grouped according to their geographical distribution. The genetic diversity based on fecundity genes presented here is an essential step towards the future exploitation of the available goat genetic resources in research and breeding programs.

Community Perceptions and Challenges to Wildlife Conservation, the Case of Borana National Park, Southern Ethiopia

Fecundity gene SNPS as informative markers for assessment of Indian goat genetic architecture