IngentaConnect Highways block gene flow and cause a rapid decline in genetic div...

Authors: Epps, Clinton W.; Palsbøll, Per J.¹; Wehausen, John D.²; Roderick, George K.¹; Ramey, Rob R.³; McCullough, Dale R.¹

Source: Ecology Letters, Volume 8, Number 10, October 2005 , pp. 1029-1038(10)

Publisher: Blackwell Publishing

Abstract:

The rapid expansion of road networks has reduced connectivity among populations of flora and fauna. The resulting isolation is assumed to increase population extinction rates, in part because of the loss of genetic diversity. However, there are few cases where loss of genetic diversity has been linked directly to roads or other barriers. We analysed the effects of such barriers on connectivity and genetic diversity of 27 populations of Ovis canadensis nelsoni (desert bighorn sheep). We used partial Mantel tests, multiple linear regression and coalescent simulations to infer changes in gene flow and diversity of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA markers. Our findings link a rapid reduction in genetic diversity (up to 15%) to as few as 40 years of anthropogenic isolation. Interstate highways, canals and developed areas, where present, have apparently eliminated gene flow. These results suggest that anthropogenic barriers constitute a severe threat to the persistence of naturally fragmented populations.

Keywords: Gene flow; genetic diversity; habitat fragmentation; metapopulation; Ovis canadensis; road

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2005.00804.x

Affiliations: 1: Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of California Berkeley, 137 Mulford Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-3114, USA 2: White Mountain Research Station, University of California, 3000 E. Line Street, Bishop, CA 93514, USA 3: Department of Zoology, Denver Museum of Nature and Science, 2001 Colorado Blvd., Denver, CO 80205, USA

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Highways block gene flow and cause a rapid decline in genetic diversity of desert bighorn sheep