Landscape genetics informs mesohabitat preference and conservation priorities for a surrogate indicator species in a highly fragmented river system.

ABSTRACT: Poor dispersal species represent conservative benchmarks for biodiversity management because they provide insights into ecological processes influenced by habitat fragmentation that are less evident in more dispersive organisms. Here we used the poorly dispersive and threatened river blackfish (Gadopsis marmoratus) as a surrogate indicator system for assessing the effects of fragmentation in highly modified river basins and for prioritizing basin-wide management strategies. We combined individual, population and landscape-based approaches to analyze genetic variation in samples spanning the distribution of the species in Australia's Murray-Darling Basin, one of the world's most degraded freshwater systems. Our results indicate that G. marmoratus displays the hallmark of severe habitat frag

SUBMITTER: Lean J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5345605 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature