CRB: Mating System and Effective Population Size: An Analysis of Philopatry and Multiple Paternity in Green Sea Turtles

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9322544 Parker The behavior of animals determines the movement of alleles within and among populations and thus defines basic characteristics of population genetic parameters. In addition, gene flow is regulated by dispersal events from natal to breeding sites, and by subsequent dispersal during the lifetime of the individual. Finally, site tenacity (philopatry) may reduce genetic diversity in a population because individuals return to the same breeding sites each year. The purpose of this conservation and restoration biology research is to determine the mating systems in two populations of the endangered green sea turtle. Specifically, the PI will use molecular approaches to accurately reconstruct parental genotypes in this species, and use these data to extend existing models of the interaction between mating systems and effective population size for different populations and rates of reproductive failure in the green sea turtle. %%% To effectively understand the role of breeding systems in the maintenance of genetic diversity in wild populations of endangered species, it is necessary to measure patterns of within- versus between-population paternity. Essentially, genetic diversity will be maintained under a certain frequency of paternity from members of disparate populations. This research is important because it will use molecular markers in a non-destructive fashion to monitor the potential for enhancing genetic diversity in a species whose behavior is difficult to observe in nature. ***