The Irish Damselfly: identifying population genetic structure and optimising habitat management for an iconic Irish species

破碎化景观的结构如何影响物种的动态和持久性是保护中最重要的问题之一。当个体分散在碎片之间时，可能会导致集合种群，随后的斑块状种群结构和殖民灭绝过程可能会使保护优先事项的决策复杂化。关键参数不仅是有效种群（Ne），低于此种群是不可行的，但也将有景观结构的临界阈值2。除了影响生活在破碎景观中的种群生存能力的生态和环境因素外，还有由小种群规模和有限的基因流造成的遗传因素。蜻蜓（蜻蜓和豆娘）是最濒危的淡水动物类群之一。在一百年前在英国繁殖的七种Coenagrionid豆娘中，有两种现在已经灭绝，而剩下的五种中有三种分布非常有限。其中之一，爱尔兰豆娘或爱尔兰/新月蓝（Coenagrion lunulatum）被发现在低营养状态的湿地，小湖泊，沼泽和割除沼泽的殖民地，因此自然表现出一个不完整的人口结构。该物种在爱尔兰被世界自然保护联盟列为易危物种，并被认为是在下降，富营养化，栖息地丧失，从长远来看，气候变化是最重大的威胁。先前的研究表明，小型未富集湖泊与漂浮植被床和鱼类的缺乏是人口发生的重要因素3，虽然目前尚不清楚爱尔兰的可行殖民地数量，但调查支持人口作为集合种群的理论（蜻蜓爱尔兰2000-2004和蜻蜓爱尔兰2019-2024）。此外，在爱尔兰的集合种群结构，该物种也有一个有趣的国际分布;由于其地理位置和地质历史，爱尔兰通常有较少的物种相比，英国和欧洲大陆。然而，爱尔兰豆娘是一个罕见的例外，因为它是在爱尔兰发现，但不是整个英国，其分布的其余部分涵盖了北方欧洲和远东中国。在主要欧洲人群中，它发生在芬兰，荷兰和法国。该项目将有三个主要组成部分：1）确定爱尔兰豆娘与欧洲其他种群的系统发育关系2）调查物种种群遗传学（连通性，有效种群大小，近亲繁殖水平等）。在爱尔兰3）开发综合模型，结合遗传连接性措施的元种群动态和栖息地适宜性，为保护行动提供信息。预计该项目将涉及与芬兰和法国合作伙伴的国际实地工作。该项目提供遗传学，基因组学，生物信息学，进化分析和一系列生态建模技术的优秀培训机会，与广泛的核心和通用技能发展方案相结合，这是Quadrat DTP培训方案的核心。学生将成为一个充满活力和充满活力的多学科研究生社区的一部分，并有机会为我们对地理学，进化生物学和淡水生态学基本问题的理解做出重大贡献。

How the structure of a fragmented landscape influences the dynamics and persistence of a species is one of the most important questions in conservation1. Where individuals can disperse between fragments a metapopulation can result, and the subsequent patchy population structure and colonization-extinction processes can complicate decisions regarding conservation priorities. Key parameters are not only the effective population (Ne) below which the population is not viable, but there will also be critical thresholds for landscape structure2. In addition to the ecological and environmental factors which influence the viability of populations living in fragmented landscapes there are also genetic factors caused by small populations sizes and restricted geneflow. The Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) are among the most endangered freshwater faunal taxa. Of the seven Coenagrionid damselflies that bred in the UK a hundred years ago, two are now extinct, while three of the remaining five have highly restricted distributions. One of these, the Irish Damselfly or Irish/Crescent Bluet (Coenagrion lunulatum) is found in colonies in low nutrient status wetlands, small lakes, fens and cutover bogs, and so naturally exhibits a patchy population structure. The species is IUCN listed as Vulnerable in Ireland, and is thought to be in decline, with eutrophication, habitat loss and in the longer term, climate change being the most significant threats. Previous work has shown that small unenriched lakes with beds of floating vegetation and an absence of fish are important factors for population occurrence3, and while the number of viable colonies in Ireland is currently unknown, surveys support the theory that the populations function as a metapopulation (Dragonfly Ireland 2000-2004 and Dragonfly Ireland 2019-2024). In addition, to the metapopulation structure within Ireland, the species also has an interesting international distribution; due to its geographical position and geological history, Ireland typically has fewer species present compared to Britain and Continental Europe. However, the Irish Damselfly is a rare exception to this as it is found in Ireland, but not throughout Britain, and the remainder of its distribution covers northern Europe and as far east as China. Within main European populations, it occurs in Finland, the Netherlands, and France. This project will have three main components: 1) To determine the phylogenetic relationship of the Irish Damselfly to the other populations across Europe 2) To investigate the species population genetics (connectivity, effective population size, levels of inbreeding, etc.) within Ireland3) To develop integrative models combining meta-population dynamics and habitat suitability informed by genetic connectivity measures, with a goal of informing conservation actions.It is anticipated that this project will involve International field-work with partners in Finland and France.The project offers outstanding training opportunities in genetics, genomics, bioinformatics, evolutionary analyses and a range of ecological modelling techniques, coupled with the programme of broad core and generic skills development that is central to the Quadrat DTP training programme. The student will become part of a dynamic and vibrant multidisciplinary postgraduate community, and have the opportunity to make a major contribution to our understanding of fundamental issues in biogeography, evolutionary biology, and freshwater ecology.