Study area and puma capture
Our study was conducted in two regions in the Rocky Mountains in
Colorado separated by ~500 km but at similar elevations
and with similar puma densities
(Lewis et
al. 2015), vegetative and landscape attributes, yet with differing
degrees of urbanization (see Fig. S10 and
Lewis et
al. 2015). In the treatment region in the Uncompahgre Plateau on the
Western Slope of Colorado, blood samples were taken from 114 individuals
(2004-2011: 50 females & 33 males, 2012-2014: 21 females & 19 males)
and monitored intensively (e.g., GPS collars) until their death or the
end of the study in 2014. In the stable management region in the Front
Range of Colorado, blood samples were taken from 56 individuals from
2005-2014 (2005-2011: 11 females & 5 males, 2012-2014: 21 females & 19
males). Captured pumas were anesthetized with established sedative and
tranquilizer protocols (Logan 2012) and released after blood, serum, and
oral swabs were collected. Animal sex, age, and capture location were
recorded. See Fountain-Jones et al. (2019) for sample storage,
FIVpco DNA extraction and sequencing details. In brief,
for samples that were qPCR positive for FIVpco, the
complete ORFA and pol gene regions were isolated using a
nested PCR protocol (Fountain-Jones et al. 2019). Recombination
was removed and the genes were concatenated together. See Table S1 for a
summary of the sequence data and a comparison of study area size, host
mortality, and host genetic diversity between regions.