Conservation Biology Test 2

What will happen to some animals if heterogeneity is added to their gene pool?

they will be harmed

What do conservation genetics deal with?

varying levels of diversity

What is the ultimate goal of conservation genetics and what allows this to happen?

to create the most diverse gene pool possible for a given species

a firm understanding of different genetic levels within conservation is needed

Genetic Bottlenecking

inbreeding event, can be a natural phenomena

How are cheetahs an example of a natural bottleneck?

they get outcompeted and whittle down to a small population, and stay that way for about five generations

What is the main issue with zoos and genetics?

there are not enough individual animals, and because of this, they are constantly fighting bottlenecking

Loci

segment of genes on an allele

Allele

different colored parts of chromosomes

contain nucleotides that make up the genes

What are genes made up of?

500 - 800 base pairs

Chromosome

all the genes put together on one particular chromosome

Synergistic levels

one level cannot exist without the other, they are connected

What does the difference in a nucleotide sequence cause

a genetic difference

What HAS to be a part of captive breeding?

genetics

What are some problematic effects of low population size?

lower genetic variability

immune response

loss of important advantageous alleles

creation of genetic bottlenecks

creation of inheritance depression

Heterozygosity (He)

an ultimate goal in conservation genetics

How do some genes mutate?

by being “tickled” (sun touching skin), and that means they are not evolutionarily concerned

some genes will rarely mutate

Homozygosity (Ho)

the same nucleotide sequence across

not always deleterious

What are some individual genetic issues?

individual organisms represent the basic independent entities of the gene pool of a species

wanting of a diverse gene pool

animals that have large home range sizes leads to heterozygosity

species with small home ranges are more homozygous

Gene pool

types of alleles present and their relative frequency amongst individuals

Gene flow

immigration of new genes into a population = more genetic diversity

Satellite Males

critical in maintaining genetic diversity, add heterogeneity within a new territory

What species are more homozygous?

species with small home ranges

Genetic Bottlenecks

result in a net loss of heterozygosity

Inbreeding

when N is lost, heterozygosity is lost and inbreeding results

What are some major problems with inbreeding?

allele frequencies can no longer change to meet the demands of the environment

genotypes homogenize, resulting in potentially more frequent homozygous recessive genetic coadaptations

Inbreeding Depression

used to describe the “depressed evolutionary ability” of an organism genotype at low N

What are inbreeding depressions associated with?

declines in metabolic efficiency

depressed growth rate (dwarfism is one of the key concepts of inbreeding)

reproductive physiology problems (male issue: sperm that lacks tails and movement, or sperms with multiple tails)

disease resistance (lose the ability to fight off viruses as opposed to bacterial infections)

Out-Breeding Depressions

important “species” maintaining mechanism

when breeding animals, breed with the closest available populations to them

Why do outbreeding depressions have the term “depression” in them?

among populations mating “depress” important within population alleles

results in species overall fitness decreased

RADSeq

looks at single nucleotide polymorphisms, or snips, which are what happens when you look at a very localized level of evolution

Why could RADSeq snips not be looked at historically?

they were expensive

How many base pairs could RADSeq SNIPS look at?

200 base pairs

How do you look at SNIPS?

you cannot look at just one gene, you’d have to look at whole genome

If you do not share SNIPS, what are you?

different taxa

Population Admixing

two populations got together and mixed genetically

admixer plots can be put on a map

Metapopulation Dynamics

subpopulations nested in a regional population

important for working in the field, and in zoos for captive populations based on genetic likeness

What do you need to understand in metapopulation dynamics?

natural history, must know dispersal biology

not understanding how they age/means not understanding the actual organism

Wild Metapopulations

sub-populations are identifiable breeding groups spatially separated, but have gene flow between them

Chances for a genetic swap

the closer you are to a population, the higher the chance of a genetic swap, the farther you are, the less likely the chance of a genetic swap

Why is temporary vacant habitat is important, especially for long term survival of species

holds spill over populations

juveniles (mammals)

satellite males

Metapopulation Dynamics

so in nature, populations are naturally arranged in a metapopulation structure over space and time

What drives the health of metapopulations?

habitat availability

What does more habitat equal?

larger number of metapopulations = higher amount of genetic diversity

Where are edge effects specific to?

Appalachia, and forests in general, are a series of deleterious called Edge Effects

Edge

ecotomes, the creation of these lands leads to forest fragmentation

What are the two major problematic fronts

desiccation and invasion

What do desiccation and invasion do to Appalachian ecosystems?

ultimately dry moist Appalachian ecosystems

once dry, enable certain invasive species amicable habitat for invasion

Desiccation

removal of forest results in increased light levels penetrating the forest floor

What does desiccation result in?

increased soil temps, which leads to increased levels of evaporation, which results in the forest drying

the impact is even more drastic when detritus and topsoil are removed

What are the causes of the impact of desiccation?

timbering

surface mining

development

road creation

What are all the same terms?

invasive, introduced, exotic and non-native species