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Distribution, Abundance, And Population Genetics Of The Alligator Snapping Turtle (Macrochelys Temminckii) In Mississippi, Luke Pearson
Distribution, Abundance, And Population Genetics Of The Alligator Snapping Turtle (Macrochelys Temminckii) In Mississippi, Luke Pearson
Dissertations
The southeastern United States is a freshwater turtle biodiversity hotspot, second only to southeastern Asia, and this region is inhabited by one of the largest freshwater turtles in the world: the alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii). This species was heavily harvested from the 1960’s to the 1980’s for the turtle soup industry, apparently contributing to substantial, range-wide population declines. These declines, coupled with anthropogenic impacts on riverine and floodplain habitats, have led to M. temminckii being petitioned for federal listing under the U.S. Endangered Species Act; it is currently under review by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service …
Population Genetics And Microbial Communities Of The Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus Polyphemus), Daniel Lyle Gaillard
Population Genetics And Microbial Communities Of The Gopher Tortoise (Gopherus Polyphemus), Daniel Lyle Gaillard
Dissertations
The gopher tortoise, Gopherus polyphemus, is an endangered species living in the southeastern United States. The recent and drastic decline in tortoise numbers has resulted in a multi-faceted approach to conserve this species. I used a population genetic approach to determine the population structure, genetic diversity and barriers to gene flow at a broad, regional and local scale. Tortoises are divided into five distinct genetic populations at the broad scale, the central populations have the highest levels of genetic diversity and the Tombigbee, Mobile, Apalachicola, Suwannee and St. John’s Rivers appear to be barriers to gene flow. At the regional …