Dissertation Research: Evaluating Indirect Estimates of Gene Flow: A Comparative Life History Approach

小行星9423603 已知生物自然种群之间的扩散程度会影响一系列广泛的生物事件，包括物种形成、灭绝和局部适应。 遗传的扩散，称为基因流的后果，通常是从基因频率的地理分布推断。 然而，这种估计的准确性很难确定。 测量基因流密切相关的物种，不同的传播能力，使这种间接的估计进行评估。 该建议概述了一个采样制度的19种分散的Arrenurus水螨在一系列的空间尺度。 这些物种中的大多数在水生昆虫的成虫阶段一生中只分散一次，而少数根本不分散。 螨种的扩散能力可以根据宿主的已知属性和宿主-寄生虫关系进行分类排名。 将从等位酶数据分析每个螨种的遗传种群结构，以及一些昆虫宿主的种群结构。 有关昆虫的数据将提供深入了解寄生虫的寄生协会的遗传后果。 对于水螨，扩散和基因流之间的相关性将进行统计评估，并考虑系统发育关系。 由于这些螨是密切相关的，发生在类似的栖息地，它们的传播潜力是很好的理解，它们之间的差异，而不是传播能力最小化。 这项研究将是首次尝试评估一大组共同发生的密切相关物种的种群遗传结构。

9423603 HAIRSTON The magnitude of dispersal between natural populations of organisms is known to affect a wide array of biological events, including speciation, extinction, and local adaptation. The genetic consequence of dispersal, termed gene flow, is commonly inferred from the geographic distribution of gene frequencies. However, the accuracy of such estimates is difficult to ascertain. Measuring gene flow in closely related species which vary in dispersal ability allows such indirect estimates to be evaluated. This proposal outlines a sampling regime for 19 species disperse of Arrenurus water mites across a range of spatial scales. The majority of these species disperse only once in their lifetime on the adult stages of aquatic insects, while a few do not disperse at all. Dispersal ability of the mite species can be ranked categorically based on known attributes of the host and the host-parasite relationship. Analyses of genetic population structure will be made for each mite species from allozyme data, as will the population structure of some insect hosts. Data regarding the insects will provide insight into the genetic consequences of the parasitic association to the parasites. For the water mites, correlations between dispersal and gene flow will be assessed statistically, and phylogenetic relationships will be considered. Because these mites are closely related, occur in similar habitats, and their dispersal potential is well understood, differences between them other than dispersal ability are minimized. This study will be the first attempt to assess population genetic structure in a large group of co-occurring, closely related species.