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193 results for “Population connectivity”
Data for: Inferring population connectivity in Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnakes (Sistrurus catenatus) using landscape genetics
<p>Assessing the environmental factors that influence the ability of a threatened species to move through the landscape can be used to identify conservation actions that connect isolated populations. However, direct observations of species' movement are often limited making the development of alternate approaches necessary. Here we use landscape genetic analyses to assess the impact of landscape features on the movement of individuals between local populations of a threatened snake, the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake (<em>Sistrurus catenatus</em>). We linked connectivity data with habitat information from two landscapes of similar size: a large region of unfragmented habitat and a previously studied fragmented landscape consisting of isolated patches of habitat. We used this analysis to identify features of the landscape where modification or acquisition would enhance population connectivity in the fragmented region. We found evidence that current connectivity is impacted by both contemporary landcover features, especially roads, and inherent landscape features such as elevation. Next, we derived estimates of expected movement ability using a recently developed pedigree-based approach and Least Cost Paths through the unfragmented landscape. We then used our pedigree and resistance map to estimate resistance polygons of the potential extent for <em>S. catenatus</em> movement in the fragmented landscape. These polygons identify possible sites for future corridors connecting currently isolated populations in this landscape by linking the impact of future habitat modification or land acquisition to dispersal ability in this species. Overall, our study shows how modeling landscape resistance across differently fragmentated landscapes can identify habitat features that affect contemporary movement in threatened species in fragmented landscapes and how this information can be used to guide mitigation actions whose goal is to connect isolated populations.</p>
Data from: Sporadic genetic connectivity among small insular populations of the rare geoendemic plant Caulanthus amplexicaulis var. barbarae (Santa Barbara Jewelflower)
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Habitat association predicts population connectivity and persistence in flightless beetles: a population genomics approach within a dynamic archipelago
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Data for: Inferring population connectivity in Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnakes (Sistrurus catenatus) using landscape genetics
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Data from: Immediate genetic augmentation and enhanced habitat connectivity are required to secure the future of an iconic endangered freshwater fish population
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An individual-based model trained on multiple data sources estimates population connectivity and facilitates aggregation of harvest management units
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Population connectivity and genetic offset in the spawning coral Acropora digitifera in Western Australia
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Data from: Population structure, connectivity and demographic history of an apex marine predator, the bull shark Carcharhinus leucas
Knowledge of population structure, connectivity and effective population size remains limited for many marine apex predators, including the bull shark Carcharhinus leucas. This large-bodied coastal shark is distributed worldwide in warm temperate and tropical waters, and uses estuaries and rivers as nurseries. As an apex predator, the bull shark likely plays a vital ecological role within marine food webs, but is at risk due to inshore habitat degradation and various fishing pressures. We investigated the bull shark's global population structure and demographic history by analysing the genetic diversity of 370 individuals from 11 different locations using 25 microsatellite loci and three mitochondrial genes (CR, nd4, cytb). Both types of markers revealed clustering between sharks from the Western Atlantic and those from the Western Pacific and the Western Indian Ocean, with no contemporary gene flow. Microsatellite data suggested low differentiation between the Western Indian Ocean and the Western Pacific, but substantial differentiation was found using mitochondrial DN A. Integrating information from both types of markers and using Bayesian computation with a random forest procedure (ABC-RF), this discordance was found to be due to a complete lack of contemporary gene flow. High genetic connectivity was found both within the Western Indian Ocean and within the Western Pacific. In conclusion, these results suggest important structuring of bull shark populations globally with important gene flow occurring along coastlines , highlighting the need for management and conservation plans on regional scales rather than oceanic basin scale.
The demographic contributions of connectivity versus local dynamics to population growth of an endangered bird
<p>1. Conservation and management increasingly focus on connectivity, because connectivity driven by variation in immigration rates across landscapes is thought to be crucial for maintaining local population and metapopulation persistence. Yet, efforts to quantify the relative role of immigration on population growth across the entire range of species and over time have been lacking.</p> <p>2. We assessed whether immigration limited local and range-wide population growth of the endangered snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis) in Florida, USA, over 18 years using multi-state, reverse-time modeling that accounts for imperfect detection of individuals and unobservable states. Demographic contributions of immigration varied depending on the dynamics and geographic position of the local populations, were scale-dependent, and changed over time.</p> <p>3. By comparing the relative contributions of immigration versus local demography for periods of significant change in local abundance, we found empirical evidence for a disproportionately large role of immigration in facilitating population growth of a centrally-located population—a connectivity 'hub'. The importance of connectivity changed depending of the spatial scale considered, such that immigration was more important driver of population growth at small versus large spatial scales. Furthermore, the contribution of immigration was much greater during time periods when local population size was small, emphasizing abundance-dependent rescue effects.</p> <p>4. Our findings suggest that efforts aimed at improving local breeding habitat will likely be most effective at increasing snail kite population growth. More broadly, our results provide much needed information on the role of connectivity for population growth, suggesting that connectivity conservation may have the greatest benefits when efforts focus on centrally located habitat patches and small populations. Furthermore, our results highlight that connectivity is highly dynamic over time and that interpreting the effects of connectivity at local scales may not transfer to region-wide dynamics.</p>
Data from: Population structure, genetic connectivity, and adaptation in the Olympia oyster (Ostrea lurida) along the west coast of North America
Effective management of threatened and exploited species requires an understanding of both the genetic connectivity among populations and local adaptation. The Olympia oyster (Ostrea lurida), patchily distributed from Baja California to the central coast of Canada, has a long history of population declines due to anthropogenic stressors. For such coastal marine species, population structure could follow a continuous isolation-by-distance model, contain regional blocks of genetic similarity separated by barriers to gene flow, or be consistent with a null model of no population structure. To distinguish between these hypotheses in O. lurida, 13,424 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were used to characterize rangewide population structure, genetic connectivity, and adaptive divergence. Samples were collected across the species range on the west coast of North America, from southern California to Vancouver Island. A conservative approach for detecting putative loci under selection identified 235 SNPs across 129 GBS loci, which were functionally annotated and analyzed separately from the remaining neutral loci. While strong population structure was observed on a regional scale in both neutral and outlier markers, neutral markers had greater power to detect fine-scale structure. Geographic regions of reduced gene flow aligned with known marine biogeographic barriers, such as Cape Mendocino, Monterey Bay, and the currents around Cape Flattery. The outlier loci identified as under putative selection included genes involved in developmental regulation, sensory information processing, energy metabolism, immune response, and muscle contraction. These loci are excellent candidates for future research and may provide targets for genetic monitoring programs. Beyond specific applications for restoration and management of the Olympia oyster, this study lends to the growing body of evidence for both population structure and adaptive differentiation across a range of marine species exhibiting the potential for panmixia. Computational notebooks are available to facilitate reproducibility and future open-sourced research on the population structure of <i>Ostrea lurida</i>.
Population structure and connectivity among coastal and freshwater Kelp Gull (Larus dominicanus) populations from Patagonia
<p>The genetic identification of significant evolutionary units and information on their connectivity can be used to design effective management and conservation plans. Despite having high dispersal capacity, several seabird species show population structure due to both abiotic and biotic barriers to gene flow. The Kelp Gull is the most abundant species of gull in the southern hemisphere. In Argentina it reproduces in both marine and freshwater environments, with more than 100,000 pairs following a metapopulation dynamic across 140 colonies in the Atlantic coast of Patagonia. However, little is known about the demography and connectivity of inland populations. We aim to provide information on the connectivity of the largest freshwater colonies (those from Nahuel Huapi Lake) with the closest Pacific and Atlantic populations to evaluate if these freshwater colonies are being subsidized by the larger coastal populations. We sampled three geographic regions (Nahuel Huapi Lake and the Atlantic and Pacific coasts) and employed a reduced-representation genomic approach to genotype individuals for single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). We found, using clustering and phylogenetic analyses, that there are three genetic groups, each corresponding to one of our sampled regions. Individuals from marine environments are more closely related to each other than to those from Nahuel Huapi Lake, indicating that the latter population constitutes the first freshwater Kelp Gull colony to be identified as a significant evolutionary unit in Patagonia.</p>
Population connectivity across a highly fragmented distribution: Phylogeography of the Chalcophaps doves
<p><i>Chalcophaps</i> is a morphologically conserved genus of ground-walking doves distributed from India to mainland China, south to Australia, and across the western Pacific to Vanuatu. Here, we reconstruct the evolutionary history of this genus using DNA sequence data from two nuclear genes and one mitochondrial gene, sampled from throughout the geographic range of <i>Chalcophaps</i>. We find support for three major evolutionary lineages in our phylogenetic reconstruction, each corresponding to the three currently recognized <i>Chalcophaps </i>species. Despite this general concordance, we identify discordant mitochondrial and nuclear ancestries in the subspecies <i>C. longirostris timorensis, </i>raising further questions about the evolutionary history of this Timor endemic population. Within each of the three species, we find evidence for isolation by distance or hierarchical population structure, indicating an important role for geography in the diversification of this genus. Despite being distributed broadly across a highly fragmented geographic region known as a hotspot for avian diversification, the <i>Chalcophaps</i> doves show modest levels of phenotypic and genetic diversity, a pattern potentially explained by strong population connectivity owing to high overwater dispersal capability.</p>
Data from: Forest connectivity boosts pollen flow among populations of the oil-producing Nierembergia linariifolia
<p>Context</p> <p>The process of forest fragmentation determines landscapes with isolated forest patches immersed in a distinct matrix. This process may hinder pollinator movement throughout the landscape, which may negatively impact on pollen flow among native plant populations.</p> <p>Objectives</p> <p>We evaluated the effect of the loss of forest connectivity on pollen dispersal by specialized native bees in the oil-producing and self-incompatible <em>Nierembergia linariifolia</em>.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We estimated pollen flow between plants of <em>N. linariifolia</em> at an agroecosystem with remnant forest of central Argentina. Six plant populations (source populations) were treated with fluorescent dyes as pollen analogues, and stigmata of recipient plants were collected to seek for dye particles. Dye deposition rate was assessed for plants that were connected through remnant forest to a source population or unconnected by a crop matrix, and at increasing distances to a source population.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Deposition rate per plant was higher in connected than in unconnected plants, and decreased with increasing distances to a source population in an exponential fashion. Most of the dispersal events between connected plants occurred at the vicinity of a source population. Long dispersal events (up to 1259 m) were recorded between plants located at neighbouring forest patches separated by an agricultural matrix.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Landscape connectivity through forest remnants is key to enhance pollen flow between self-incompatible plants such as <em>N. linariifolia</em>. Besides, the evidence of pollen dispersal through the agricultural matrix pinpoints the essential role of native pollinators in maintaining pollen flow among unconnected plant populations in fragmented landscapes.</p>
Connectivity among thermal habitats buffers the effects of warm climate on life-history traits and population dynamics
<p>1. Contemporary climate change affects population dynamics, but its influence varies with landscape structure. It is still unclear whether landscape fragmentation buffers or enhances the effects of climate on population size and on the age and body size of individuals composing these populations.</p> <p>2. This study aims to investigate the impacts of warm climates on lizard life-history traits and population dynamics in habitats varying in their connectivity.</p> <p>3. We monitored common lizard (<em>Zootoca vivipara</em>) populations for three years in an experimental system in which both climatic conditions and connectivity among habitats were simultaneously manipulated. We considered two climatic treatments (i.e., present-day climate and warm climate (+1.4°C than present-day climate)) and two connectivity treatments (i.e., a connected treatment in which individuals could move from one climate to the other and an isolated treatment in which movement between climates was not possible). We monitored survival, reproduction, growth, dispersal, age and body size of each individual in the system as well as population density through time.</p> <p>4. We found that the influence of warm climates on the life-history traits and population dynamics depended on the connectivity among thermal habitats. Populations in warm climates were i) composed of younger individuals only when isolated; ii) larger in population size only in connected habitats; and iii) composed of larger age-specific individuals independently of the landscape configuration. The connectivity among habitats altered population responses to climate warming likely through asymmetries in the flow and phenotype of dispersers between thermal habitats.</p> <p>5. Our results demonstrate that landscape fragmentation can drastically change the dynamics and persistence of populations facing climate change.</p>
Data from: Small but connected islands can maintain populations and genetic diversity under climate change
<p>In response to the striking effects of environmental change, conservation strategies often include the identification of conservation areas that can effectively maintain vulnerable species. Consequently, identifying system-specific conditions that maintain the demographic and genetic viability of species of conservation concern is essential. Connectivity plays a critical role in the persistence of populations. Islands have been model systems to understand connectivity and metapopulation processes and have emerged as particularly favorable targets for conservation. While islands can be isolated from mainland disturbances, it is unknown what degree of isolation is necessary to avoid unfavorable changes but remain sufficiently connected to maintain population viability. To test this question, we explored connectivity within the Apostle Islands, an archipelago of 22 islands within Lake Superior, by comparing historical and contemporary trends in ice bridge connectivity and by simulating the effect of reduced connectivity within this system. We developed a demographically informed individual-based model to explicitly test the role of connectivity to influence the persistence and genetic diversity of American marten (<em>Martes americana</em>), a forest carnivore at risk across its southern range boundary. We found that genetic diversity was resilient to moderate changes in ice cover, but a complete loss of connectivity resulted in rapid genetic erosion. Despite genetic erosion, populations persisted as long as nominal connectivity occurred between islands. Our work suggests that connectivity will decline, but martens would be resilient to moderate changes, and, in the short term, the Apostle Islands can act as a refuge along this species' southern range boundary. Identifying thresholds in connectivity that maintain populations but allow for isolation from disturbance will be necessary to identify suitable areas for species conservation across space and time.</p>
Marine stepping-stones: Connectivity of Mytilus edulis populations between offshore energy installations
Recent papers postulate that epifaunal organisms use artificial structures as stepping-stones to spread to areas that are too distant to reach in a single generation. With thousands of artificial structures present in the North Sea, we test the hypothesis that these structures are connected by water currents and act as an interconnected reef. Population genetic structure of the Blue mussel, Mytilus edulis was expected to follow a pattern predicted by particle tracking models (PTM). Correlation between population genetic differentiation, based on microsatellite markers, and particle exchange was tested. Specimens of M. edulis were found at each location, although the PTM indicated that locations >85 km offshore were isolated from coastal sub-populations. Fixation coefficient FST correlated with the number of arrivals in the PTM. However, the number of effective migrants per generation as inferred from coalescent simulations did not show a strong correlation with the arriving particles. Isolation by distance analysis showed no increase in isolation with increasing distance and we did not find clear structure among the populations. The marine stepping-stone effect is obviously important for the distribution of M. edulis in the North Sea and it may influence ecologically comparable species in a similar way. In the absence of artificial shallow hard substrates, M. edulis would be unlikely to survive in offshore North Sea waters. Although we found an indication that FST was lower between connected locations, isolation by distance analysis showed no increase in isolation with increasing distance. Finally, we did not find clear structure among the populations.
Pairing functional connectivity with population dynamics to prioritize corridors for Southern California spotted owls
<p><strong>Aim:</strong> Land use change, climate change, and shifts to disturbance regimes make successful wildlife management challenging, particularly when ongoing urbanization constrains habitat and movement. Preserving and maintaining landscape connectivity is a potential strategy to support wildlife responding to these stressors. Using a novel model framework, we determined the population-level benefit of a set of identified potential corridors for spotted owl population viability.</p> <p><strong>Location:</strong> Southern California, United States.</p> <p><strong>Methods:</strong> Combining habitat suitability and dynamic metapopulation models, we compared the benefit of corridors to the Southern California spotted owl population, measured as the increase in the expected minimum abundance, both now and under a future climate. Our approach considered key corridor characteristics important to conservation decisions, namely, corridor irreplaceability and local population network benefit.</p> <p><strong>Results:</strong> We identified two corridors likely to increase Southern California spotted owl expected minimum abundance under current climate conditions. At the regional scale, of the 16 corridors evaluated, one corridor was irreplaceable (i.e. no other corridors in the network could provide a similar increase in abundance when the irreplaceable corridor was removed) and one corridor was identified as redundant (i.e. remaining corridors in the network can provide some of the increases in abundance offered by the removed corridor). Both putative corridors connected two large, populous, and similarly-sized patches. Additionally, we identified two more corridors at the local scale. We found that, under climate change, population declines may limit the benefit of connectivity for a range-restricted species like the spotted owl.</p> <p><strong>Main Conclusions:</strong> Our analytical approach highlights important criteria for corridor identification and prioritization, namely, irreplaceability versus redundancy, local versus regional benefit, and corridor impact in a changing landscape. With the capability of incorporating estimated functional connectivity into population dynamics, our modeling framework advances connectivity decision making for other species of conservation concern and archetypal taxa within ecological communities.</p>
Biophysical larval dispersal models of observed bonefish (Albula vulpes) spawning events in Abaco, The Bahamas: An assessment of population connectivity and ocean dynamics
<p>Biophysical models are a powerful tool for assessing population connectivity of marine organisms that broadcast spawn. <em>Albula</em> <em>vulpes</em> is a species of bonefish that is an economically and culturally important sportfish found throughout the Caribbean and that exhibits genetic connectivity among geographically distant populations. We created ontogenetically relevant biophysical models for bonefish larval dispersal based upon multiple observed spawning events in Abaco, The Bahamas in 2013, 2018, and 2019. Biological parameterizations were informed through active acoustic telemetry, CTD casts, captive larval rearing, and field collections of related albulids and anguillids. Ocean conditions were derived from the Regional Navy Coastal Ocean Model American Seas dataset. Each spawning event was simulated 100 times using the program Ichthyop. Ten thousand particles were released at observed and putative spawning locations and were allowed to disperse for the full 71-day pelagic larval duration for <em>A</em>. <em>vulpes</em>. Settlement densities in defined settlement zones were assessed along with interactions with oceanographic features. The prevailing Northern dispersal paradigm exhibited strong connectivity with Grand Bahama, the Berry Islands, Andros, and self-recruitment to lower and upper Abaco. Ephemeral gyres and flow direction within Northwest and Northeast Providence Channels were shown to have important roles in larval retention to the Bahamian Archipelago. Larval development environments for larvae settling upon different islands showed few differences and dispersal was closely associated with the thermocline. Settlement patterns informed the suggestion for expansion of conservation parks in Grand Bahama, Abaco, and Andros, and the creation of a park in Eleuthera and the Berry Islands to protect fisheries. Further observation of spawning events and the creation of biophysical models will help to maximize protection for bonefish spawning locations and nursery habitat, and may help to predict year-class strength for bonefish stocks throughout the Greater Caribbean.</p>
Country‐wide genetic monitoring over 21 years reveals lag in genetic recovery despite spatial connectivity in an expanding carnivore (Eurasian otter, Lutra lutra) population
<p>Numerous terrestrial mammal species have experienced extensive population declines during past centuries, due largely to anthropogenic pressures. For some species, including the Eurasian otter (<em>Lutra lutra</em>), environmental and legal protection has more recently led to population growth and recolonisation of parts of their historic ranges. While heralded as conservation successes, only a few such recoveries have been examined from a genetic perspective, i.e. whether genetic variability and connectivity have been restored. We here use large-scale and long-term genetic monitoring data from UK otters, whose population underwent a well-documented population decline between the 1950s to 1970s, to explore the dynamics of a population re-expansion over a 21-year period. We genotyped otters from across Wales and England at five time points between 1994 and 2014 using 15 microsatellite loci. We used this combination of long-term temporal and large-scale spatial sampling to evaluate 3 hypotheses relating to genetic recovery; that (i) gene flow between sub-populations would increase over time, (ii) genetic diversity of previously isolated populations would increase, and that (iii) genetic structuring would weaken over time. Although we found an increase in inter-regional gene flow and admixture levels among subpopulations, there was no significant temporal change in either heterozygosity or allelic richness. Genetic structuring among the main sub-populations hence remained strong and showed a clear historical continuity. These findings highlight an underappreciated aspect of population recovery of endangered species, that genetic recovery may often lag behind the processes of spatial and demographic recovery. In other words, the restoration of physical connectivity of populations does not necessarily lead to genetic connectivity. Our findings emphasise the need for genetic data as an integral part of conservation monitoring, to enable the potential vulnerability of populations to be evaluated.</p>
Data from: Population connectivity patterns of genetic diversity, immune responses and exposure to infectious pneumonia in a metapopulation of desert bighorn sheep
<p>Habitat fragmentation is an important driver of biodiversity loss and can be remediated through management actions aimed at maintenance of natural connectivity in metapopulations. Connectivity may protect populations from infectious diseases by preserving immunogenetic diversity and disease resistance. However, connectivity could exacerbate the risk of infectious disease spread across vulnerable populations.</p> <p>We tracked the spread of a novel strain of <em>Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae</em> in a metapopulation of desert bighorn sheep (<em>Ovis canadensis nelsoni</em>) in the Mojave desert to investigate how variation in connectivity among populations influenced disease outcomes.</p> <p><em>M. ovipneumoniae</em> was detected throughout the metapopulation, indicating that the relative isolation of many of these populations did not protect them from pathogen invasion. However, we show that connectivity among bighorn sheep populations was correlated with higher immunogenetic diversity, a protective immune response and lower disease prevalence. Variation in protective immunity predicted infection risk in individual bighorn sheep and was associated with heterozygosity at genetic loci linked to adaptive and innate immune signalling.</p> <p>Together, these findings may indicate that population connectivity maintains immunogenetic diversity in bighorn sheep populations in this system and has direct effects on immune responses in individual bighorn sheep and their susceptibility to infection by a deadly pathogen.</p> <p>Our study suggests that the genetic benefits of population connectivity could outweigh the risk of infectious disease spread and supports conservation management that maintains natural connectivity in metapopulations.</p>
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