Genetics, Demography and Viability of Fragmented Populations

This book provides a detailed introduction to the genetic and demographic issues relevant to the conservation of fragmented populations and presents two sets of case studies, one on animals, the other on plants, which illustrate a variety of approaches to examine long-term population viability.

Habitat fragmentation is one of the most ubiquitous and serious environmental threats confronting the long-term survival of plant and animal species worldwide. As species become restricted to remnant habitats, effective management for long-term conservation requires a quantitative understanding of the genetic and demographic effects of habitat fragmentation, and the implications for population viability. This book provides a detailed introduction to the genetic and demographic issues relevant to the conservation of fragmented populations such as demographic stochasticity; genetic erosion; inbreeding; metapopulation biology and population viability analysis. Also presented are two sets of case studies, one on animals, the other on plants, which illustrate a variety of approaches, including the application of molecular genetic markers, the investigation of reproductive biology, and the combination of demographic monitoring and modeling, to examine long-term population viability.