Importance of Genetic-Fitness Correlations for the Conservation of Amphibians.

ABSTRACT: Endangered animals suffer from isolation of their habitats. Isolation leads to a reduction in population size as well as a decrease in genetic diversity and a concomitant increase in the risk of extinction. Amphibians are the most endangered vertebrate class. Besides habitat loss, fragmentation and isolation, amphibians are threatened by emerging diseases e.g., chytrid fungus or Ranavirus. By employing experiments, researchers investigate whether changes in genetic diversity within or among isolated populations affect amphibian fitness. While genetic diversity estimates are based on molecular markers, typically microsatellites, fitness is mostly measured as tadpole performance in rearing experiments often under varying environmental conditions. Tadpole performances (e.g., body mass,

SUBMITTER: Prohl H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10668650 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature