3) Ms. Noa Yaffa Kan-Lingwood

A major threat to wildlife under climate change is the loss of natural water sources, especially in arid environments. Since water influences behavior and space use, such management may also affect mating systems. In resource defense polygyny, males establish territories near water sources to gain reproductive advantages. Increasing water availability can lead to more males securing territories, potentially expanding female mate choice. This raises the question of whether females adjust their mating preferences when more males are available and, specifically, whether they favor genetically dissimilar mates to avoid inbreeding—an evolutionary mechanism that enhances offspring fitness. This study examines changes in mating in the Asiatic wild ass (Equus hemionus) population in the Negev Highlands and whether they changed following a 2020 water management intervention that increased the number of mating males. Sampling was based on direct observations and non-invasively collected dung (2020–2023). DNA was extracted and sequenced across 625 SNPs, followed by parentage and pairwise relatedness analyses. Among 59 mating pairs, relatedness was significantly higher than expected by chance (p < 0.001). From 2020 to 2022, relatedness remained significantly high, but in 2023 it was not different from random. These findings suggest that water source management can influence mating patterns and, consequently, long-term genetic diversity in the population.