Lagopus leucura Raw sequence reads

The delineation of intraspecific units that are evolutionarily and demographically distinct is an important step in the development of species-specific management plans. Neutral genetic variation has served as the primary data source for delineating units for conservation, but with recent advances in genomic technology, we now have an unprecedented ability to utilize information about neutral and adaptive variation across the entire genome. Here, we use traditional genetic markers (microsatellites) and a newer reduced-representation genomic approach (single nucleotide polymorphisms) to delineate distinct groups of white-tailed ptarmigan (Lagopus leucura), an alpine-obligate species that is distributed in naturally fragmented habitats from Alaska to New Mexico.

界定进化与种群统计学特征均存在显著差异的种内单元，是制定物种专属保护管理计划的关键步骤。长期以来，中性遗传变异一直是划定保护单元的核心数据来源；而随着基因组技术的迅猛发展，如今我们已具备前所未有的能力，可利用覆盖全基因组的中性与适应性遗传变异信息。本研究采用传统遗传标记微卫星标记（microsatellites）与新兴的简化基因组单核苷酸多态性（single nucleotide polymorphisms）标记技术，对白尾松鸡（Lagopus leucura）的不同种群组进行界定——该物种为专性高山栖息类群，自然分布于从阿拉斯加到新墨西哥州的自然碎片化生境中。