Maintenance of genetic diversity despite population fluctuations in the lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus)

Assessments of genetic diversity, structure, history, and effective population size (Ne) are critical for the conservation of imperiled populations. The lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) has experienced declines due to habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation in addition to substantial population fluctuations with unknown effects on genetic diversity. Our objectives were to: (i) compare genetic diversity across three temporally discrete sampling periods (2002, 2007 – 2010, and 2013 – 2014) that are characterized by low or high population abundance; (ii) examine genetic diversity at lek and lek cluster spatial scales; (ii) identify potential bottlenecks and characterize genetic structure and relatedness; and (iii) estimate the regional Ne. We analyzed 194 samples across the shinnery oak prairie region of eastern New Mexico and western Texas using 13 microsatellite loci. Mean heterozygosity, allelic richness, and inbreeding coefficient were not significantly differen..., , , # Maintenance of genetic diversity despite population fluctuations in the lesser prairie-chicken (*Tympanuchus pallidicinctus*)

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.8931zcrxt](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.8931zcrxt)

The following microsatellite and lesser prairie-chicken abundance datasets were used to analyze the relationship between lesser prairie-chicken population fluctuations and genetic diversity and structure.  

## Description of the data and file structure

Data file descriptions:

Lawrence_et.al_2024_Complete_Genotypes_12July2024.txt: file containing genotype datasets for all three sampling periods in 2002, 2007-2010, and 2013-2014.

| Variable | Unit | Description |
| :----------------------------- | :---------- | :----------------------------------------------------...