Data from: Are genetic variation and demographic performance linked?

Quantifying the empirical relationships between genetic variation and
population viability is important from both basic biological and applied
conservation perspectives, yet few populations have been monitored with
both long-term demographic and population genetics approaches. Here, we
present eight years of historical demographic data from five populations
of Boechera fecunda (Brassicaceae), a rare, self-compatible perennial
plant endemic to Montana, USA, and use integral projection models to
estimate the stochastic population growth rate (λS) and extinction risk of
each population. We combine these demographic estimates with previously
published metrics of genetic variation in the same populations to test
whether genetic diversity within populations is linked to demographic
performance. Our results show that in this predominantly inbred species,
genetics and demography are not strongly correlated, suggesting that more
inbred populations are not necessarily less viable or at higher extinction
risk than more genetically diverse populations. Interestingly, however, a
contemporary re-census revealed that, among these populations, genetic
rather than demographic parameters were better predictors of current
population density, with populations harboring greater genetic diversity
maintaining denser populations at present. In the absence of evidence for
inbreeding depression decreasing population viability in this species, we
recommend conservation of distinct, potentially locally adapted
populations of B. fecunda rather than alternatives such as translocations
or reintroductions.