Conservation translocations are an important conservation tool commonly employed to augment declining or reestablish extirpated populations. One goal of augmentation is to increase genetic diversity and reduce the risk of inbreeding depression (i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenetic variation is a well-known indicator of population fitness yet is not typically included in monitoring programs for sensitive species. Additionally, most programs monitor populations at one scale, which can lead to potential mismatches with ecological processes critical to species' conservation. Recently developed methods generating hierarchically nested population units (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHabitat fragmentation and degradation impacts an organism's ability to navigate the landscape, ultimately resulting in decreased gene flow and increased extinction risk. Understanding how landscape composition impacts gene flow (i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe warming climate will expose alpine species adapted to a highly seasonal, harsh environment to novel environmental conditions. A species can shift their distribution, acclimate, or adapt in response to a new climate. Alpine species have little suitable habitat to shift their distribution, and the limits of acclimation will likely be tested by climate change in the long-term.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Use of genomic tools to characterize wildlife populations has increased in recent years. In the past, genetic characterization has been accomplished with more traditional genetic tools (e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnderstanding the genetic underpinning of adaptive divergence among populations is a key goal of evolutionary biology and conservation. Gunnison sage-grouse () is a sagebrush obligate species with a constricted range consisting of seven discrete populations, each with distinctly different habitat and climatic conditions. Though geographically close, populations have low levels of natural gene flow resulting in relatively high levels of differentiation.
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