DOI: 10.5061/dryad.8f45n
title: Data from: Climate change and human colonization triggered habitat loss and fragmentation in Madagascar.

description: The relative effect of past climate fluctuations and anthropogenic
 activities on current biome distribution is subject to increasing
 attention, notably in biodiversity hot spots. In Madagascar, where humans
 arrived in the last ~4 to 5,000 years, the exact causes of the demise of
 large vertebrates that cohabited with humans are yet unclear. The
 prevailing narrative holds that Madagascar was covered with forest before
 human arrival and that the expansion of grasslands was the result of
 human-driven deforestation. However, recent studies have shown that
 vegetation and fauna structure substantially fluctuated during the
 Holocene. Here, we study the Holocene history of habitat fragmentation in
 the north of Madagascar using a population genetics approach. To do so, we
 infer the demographic history of two northern Madagascar neighbouring,
 congeneric and critically endangered forest dwelling lemur
 species—Propithecus tattersalli and Propithecus perrieri—using population
 genetic analyses. Our results highlight the necessity to consider
 population structure and changes in connectivity in demographic history
 inferences. We show that both species underwent demographic fluctuations
 which most likely occurred after the mid-Holocene transition. While
 mid-Holocene climate change probably triggered major demographic changes
 in the two lemur species range and connectivity, human settlements that
 expanded over the last four millennia in northern Madagascar likely played
 a role in the loss and fragmentation of the forest cover.
description: Propithecus_perrieri_24loci_3popThis file contains the microsatellite genotype data used in the current paper as well as in Salmona et al. 2015. The file is in .gtx format and can be opened and analyzed easily in Genetix, R, or with a common text editor. The file contains the data of 42 Propithecus perrieri individuals genotyped over 24 polymorphic microsatellites markers. The individuals are further classified in three "populations" that relates to sampling sites. Salmona et al. 2015 showed little differentiation between the three sampling sites, therefore the three "population" individuals can not be considered as belonging to the same population. A file containing the geographic coordinates of the samples is associated to this file. For further details on how the data was generated see Salmona, Jordi, et al. "Genetic Diversity, Population Size, and Conservation of the Critically Endangered Perrier’s Sifaka (Propithecus perrieri)." International Journal of Primatology 36.6 (2015): 1132-1153.Supp_Mat_1_Pperr_24loci_3pop.gtxPropithecus_perrieri_GPS_coordinatesThis file contains the geographic coordinates of the 42 Propithecus perrieri individuals genotyped and studied in the current paper as well as in Salmona et al., 2015. The individuals ID correspond to those in the genetic data file. Salmona, J, et al. "Genetic Diversity, Population Size, and Conservation of the Critically Endangered Perrier’s Sifaka (Propithecus perrieri)." International Journal of Primatology 36.6 (2015): 1132-1153.Supp_Mat_2_Pperr_gps_xyPropithecus_tattersalli_230ind_13locThis file contains the microsatellite genotype data used in the current paper as well as in Quéméré et al 2010, 2012. The file is in .gtx format and can be opened and analyzed easily in Genetix, R, or with a common text editor. The file contains the data of 230 Propithecus tatersalli individuals genotyped over 13 polymorphic microsatellites markers. The individuals are further classified in three "populations" that relates to the main genetic structure described in Quéméré et al 2010. A file containing the geographic coordinates of the samples is associated to this file. For further details on how the data was generated see Quemere, Erwan, et al. "Landscape genetics of an endangered lemur (Propithecus tattersalli) within its entire fragmented range." Molecular Ecology 19.8 (2010): 1606-1621.and Quéméré, Erwan, et al. "Genetic data suggest a natural prehuman origin of open habitats in northern Madagascar and question the deforestation narrative in this region." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109.32 (2012): 13028-13033.Ptattersalli_230ind_13loc.gtxPropithecus_tattersalli_GPS_coordinatesThis file contains the geographic coordinates of the 230 Propithecus tattersalli individuals genotyped and studied in the current paper as well as in Quéméré et al., 2010, 2012. The individuals ID correspond to those in the genetic data file. For further details see Quemere, Erwan, et al. "Landscape genetics of an endangered lemur (Propithecus tattersalli) within its entire fragmented range." Molecular Ecology 19.8 (2010): 1606-1621.and Quéméré, Erwan, et al. "Genetic data suggest a natural prehuman origin of open habitats in northern Madagascar and question the deforestation narrative in this region." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109.32 (2012): 13028-13033.Ptat_GIS.txt