Development of microsatellite markers in Myotis sodalis and cross-species amplification in M. gricescens, M. leibii, M. lucifugus, and M. septentrionalis

The Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis) is a highly endangered vespertilionid bat whose distribution is associated with limestone caves in the eastern United States. We present nine new polymorphic nuclear microsatellite markers for Myotis sodalis developed using an enriched library method. A total of 62 M. sodalis from two populations were used to estimate genetic diversity parameters. In M. sodalis, the number of alleles observed for each locus ranged from 17 to 48 alleles and expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.894 to 0.973. The 9 microsatellite markers were also tested on M. gricescens, M. leibii, M. lucifugus, and M. septentrionalis. These polymorphic microsatellite markers provide a valuable tool for investigating the population genetics of these species and will provide important genetic data useful for the conservation and recovery of the endangered Indiana bat.