Isolation and characterization of 29 microsatellite loci for studies of population connectivity in the butterflyfishes Chaetodon trifascialis and Chaetodon lunulatus

The highly specialised coral feeding butterflyfish Chaetodon trifascialis is increasingly threatened by the global degradation of coral reef habitats. To reveal the population genetic structure of C. trifascialis across its Indo-Pacific range, primers for thirteen independent microsatellite loci were developed. Observed heterozygosities ranged from 0.174 to 1 and expected heterozygosities ranged from 0.043 to 0.920 in 20 individuals from one Northern Great Barrier Reef location. Primers for 16 independent loci were also developed for the related butterflyfish Chaetodon lunlulatus to enable comparative studies of population genetic structure. These loci had observed heterozygosities ranging from 0.476 to 0.952 and expected heterozygosities ranging from 0.484 to 0.933. Good amplification success and levels of polymorphism were obtained when cross-testing the loci between the two species. These loci will therefore be useful to examine population genetic structure in C. trifascialis and C. lunulatus and possibly other related butterflyfish species.