DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Limits to Species' Distributions: A Landscape Genetic Study of Two Amphibian Species in Yellowstone National Park

进化生态学的主要目标是了解物种分布和种群持续性。 景观遗传学的新兴领域提供了新的方法来解决这一目标，是理想的两栖动物，因为他们的分布是敏感的景观特征，如水分，道路，海拔和土地利用的变化。黄石国家公园的两种两栖动物，北方蟾蜍和北方合唱蛙，被选为研究对象，因为它们代表了分布和丰度的差异，即，分别是不规则的和下降的对比连续的和丰富的。 拟议的研究将使用遗传数据和景观特征的影响模型来解释1）物种扩散，2）物种分布（即，研究结果将加强大黄石网络库存和监测项目，并被分享以帮助管理决策。 作为公众宣传，将为黄石公园的游客开展与研究有关的教育活动。将确定影响两栖动物扩散和下降的环境因素，这可能是重要的了解两栖动物在其他地点的下降。 为了更广泛的保护应用，本项目开发的新技术可能应用于任何物种，以确定扩散障碍，预测土地利用替代方案的影响，并优先考虑保护区。

A primary goal of evolutionary ecology is to understand species distributions and population persistence. The emerging field of landscape genetics provides new ways to address this goal and is ideal for amphibians because their distributions are sensitive to characteristics of the landscape, such as moisture, roads, elevation, and land use change. Two amphibians, the boreal toad and boreal chorus frog, in Yellowstone National Park were selected for study because they represent differences in distribution and abundance, i.e., patchy and declining vs. continuous and abundant, respectively. The proposed research will use genetic data and model the effect of landscape characteristics to explain differences in 1) species dispersal, 2) species distributions (i.e., patchy vs. continuous), and 3) population persistence.Research results will enhance the Greater Yellowstone Network Inventory and Monitoring project and be shared to aid management decisions. As public outreach, educational activities related to the research will be developed for Yellowstone visitors. Environmental factors influencing amphibian dispersal and decline will be identified, which may be important for understanding amphibian declines in other locations. For broader conservation application, novel techniques developed in this project could potentially be applied in any species to identify dispersal barriers, predict impacts of land use alternatives, and prioritize conservation areas.