OdoPlex: An STR multiplex panel optimized and validated for forensic identification and sex determination of North American mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

•STR multiplex panel optimized and validated for forensic identification of deer in the genus Odocoileus.•Autosomal STR profiles from 1143 North American white-tailed deer and mule deer representing 18 subspecies.•Methods for species-level assignment and calculation of single-source likelihood ratios in the genus Odocoileus.•OdoPlex median likelihood ratios ranged from 1.65 × 1010 (O. hemionus) to 1.58 × 1014 (O. virginianus). OdoPlex is a single 5-dye multiplex panel for forensic identification of North American mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). This robust panel is comprised of 15 autosomal markers (14 tetranucleotide loci and a single dinucleotide locus) and two sex-linked markers. OdoPlex was optimized and validated in response to the USA-based Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) research priority calling for the development and validation of standardized STR panels and associated allelic ladders for North American species routinely encountered in wildlife forensic casework. Genotypes were obtained from a combined 1143 white-tailed deer and mule deer representing 18 subspecies, including both the Key deer and Columbian white-tailed deer, two ESA-listed subspecies of white-tailed deer of special interest to population managers. Complete STR genotypes, including sex identification, were generated from as little as 125 pg of DNA template. Methods for species-level assignment and the calculation of single-source likelihood ratios accounting for population substructure are discussed in detail. Median likelihood ratios ranged from 1.65 × 1010 (O. hemionus) to 1.58 × 1014 (O. virginianus), making OdoPlex a powerful assay for individual identification of deer in the genus Odocoileus.