TY - JOUR
T1 - Demographic and genetic status of an isolated population of bog turtles (Glyptemys muhlenbergii)
T2 - Implications for managing small populations of long-lived animals
AU - Pittman, Shannon E.
AU - King, Timothy L.
AU - Faurby, Søren
AU - Dorcas, Michael E.
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgments For their assistance in the field, we thank: J. Beane, J. Dorcas, T. Dorcas, Z. Dorcas, G. Connette, A. Hamilton, L.A. Harden, A. Jendrek, C. Kiss, A. Martens, A. Mercadante, D. Pittman, S. Price, T. Thorp, G. Graeter, J. Humphries, J. Marcus, and S. Wilson. For their assistance with data analysis and presentation, we thank J.D. Willson, B. Todd, and S. Price. For comments on the manuscript, we thank R. Semlitsch, T. Luhring, W. Peterman, and G. Connette. We also thank J. Green for his assistance in the field, expert advice, and help in acquiring historical data. We thank D. Herman for detailed datasheets, advice, and support of the project. Thanks to G. Graeter and L. Williams for field equipment, advice, and support. Also, thanks to A. Somers for her advice, support, and help acquiring historical data. For financial support, we thank the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission, The Catawba Lands Conservancy (S. Wilson), The US Fish and Wildlife Service (L. Fogo), a National Science Foundation grant (DEB-0347326) to MED, and the Department of Biology at Davidson College. We would also like to thank The USGS State Partnership Program and the USGS-Leetown Science Center’s Aquatic Ecology Branch for providing partial funding support for this research and M. Eackles (USGS-Leetown Science Center) for performing the molecular genetic analyses. This research was conducted under permits issued by the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission and was approved by the Davidson College Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.
PY - 2011/12
Y1 - 2011/12
N2 - In this study, we sought to determine the population stability and genetic diversity of one isolated population of the federally-threatened bog turtle (Glyptemys muhlenbergii) in North Carolina. Using capture-recapture data, we estimated adult survival and population growth rate from 1992 to 2007. We found that the population decreased from an estimated 36 adult turtles in 1994 to approximately 11 adult turtles in 2007. We found a constant adult survival of 0. 893 (SE = 0. 018, 95% confidence interval, 0. 853-0. 924) between 1992 and 2007. Using 18 microsatellite markers, we compared the genetic status of this population with five other bog turtle populations. The target population displayed allelic richness (4. 8 ± 0. 5) and observed heterozygosity (0. 619 ± 0. 064) within the range of the other bog turtle populations. Coalescent analysis of population growth rate, effective population size, and timing of population structuring event also indicated the genetics of the target population were comparable to the other populations studied. Estimates of effective population size were a proportion of the census size in all populations except the target population, in which the effective population size was larger than the census size (30 turtles vs. 11 turtles). We attribute the high genetic diversity in the target population to the presence of multiple generations of old turtles. This study illustrates that the demographic status of populations of long-lived species may not be reflected genetically if a decline occurred recently. Consequently, the genetic integrity of populations of long-lived animals experiencing rapid demographic bottlenecks may be preserved through conservation efforts effective in addressing demographic problems.
AB - In this study, we sought to determine the population stability and genetic diversity of one isolated population of the federally-threatened bog turtle (Glyptemys muhlenbergii) in North Carolina. Using capture-recapture data, we estimated adult survival and population growth rate from 1992 to 2007. We found that the population decreased from an estimated 36 adult turtles in 1994 to approximately 11 adult turtles in 2007. We found a constant adult survival of 0. 893 (SE = 0. 018, 95% confidence interval, 0. 853-0. 924) between 1992 and 2007. Using 18 microsatellite markers, we compared the genetic status of this population with five other bog turtle populations. The target population displayed allelic richness (4. 8 ± 0. 5) and observed heterozygosity (0. 619 ± 0. 064) within the range of the other bog turtle populations. Coalescent analysis of population growth rate, effective population size, and timing of population structuring event also indicated the genetics of the target population were comparable to the other populations studied. Estimates of effective population size were a proportion of the census size in all populations except the target population, in which the effective population size was larger than the census size (30 turtles vs. 11 turtles). We attribute the high genetic diversity in the target population to the presence of multiple generations of old turtles. This study illustrates that the demographic status of populations of long-lived species may not be reflected genetically if a decline occurred recently. Consequently, the genetic integrity of populations of long-lived animals experiencing rapid demographic bottlenecks may be preserved through conservation efforts effective in addressing demographic problems.
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U2 - 10.1007/s10592-011-0257-2
DO - 10.1007/s10592-011-0257-2
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:80955144220
VL - 12
SP - 1589
EP - 1601
JO - Conservation Genetics
JF - Conservation Genetics
SN - 1566-0621
IS - 6
ER -