2024-03-29T12:03:06Zhttp://buleria.unileon.es/oai/requestoai:buleria.unileon.es:10612/102842020-12-10T09:00:56Zcom_10612_17col_10612_18
00925njm 22002777a 4500
dc
Pitra, Christian
author
Suárez Seoane, Susana
author
Martín, Carlos A.
author
Streich, Wolf Jürgen
author
Alonso, Juan Carlos
author
2019-04-17
The effects of habitat loss and fragmentation on the genetic structure and variability of wild populations have received wide empirical support and theoretical formalization. By contrast, the effects of habitat quality seem largely underinvestigated, partly due to technical difficulties in properly assessing habitat quality. In this study, we combine geographic information system (GIS)-based habitat-quality modelling with a landscape genetics approach based on mitochondrial DNA markers to evaluate the possible influence of habitat quality on the levels and distribution of genetic diversity in a range of natural populations (n = 15) of Otis tarda throughout Spain. Ninety-three percent of the population represented by our countrywide sample lives in good-quality habitats, while 4.5% and 2.5% occur respectively in intermediate and poor habitats. Habitat quality was highly correlated with patch size, population size and population density, indicating the reliability and predictive power of the habitat suitability model. Genetic diversity was significantly correlated with habitat quality, size and density of the population, but not with patch size. Three of a total of 20 existing matrilineages from the species’ current genetic pool are restricted to poor-quality habitats. This study therefore highlights the importance of considering both population genetics and habitat quality in a species of high conservation priority.
European Journal of Wildlife Research, 2011, vol. 57, n. 3
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10344-010-0447-0
http://hdl.handle.net/10612/10284
Ecología. Medio ambiente
Linking habitat quality with genetic diversity: a lesson from great bustards in Spain