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Impact of a population bottleneck on symmetry and genetic diversity in the northern elephant seal
Author(s) -
Hoelzel A. R.,
Fleischer R. C.,
Campagna C.,
Le Boeuf B. J.,
Alvord G.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
journal of evolutionary biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.289
H-Index - 128
eISSN - 1420-9101
pISSN - 1010-061X
DOI - 10.1046/j.1420-9101.2002.00419.x
Subject(s) - bottleneck , population bottleneck , biology , genetic diversity , population , diversity (politics) , fluctuating asymmetry , evolutionary biology , genetic variation , genetic drift , ecology , allele , demography , genetics , microsatellite , gene , sociology , computer science , anthropology , embedded system
The northern elephant seal (NES) suffered a severe population bottleneck towards the end of the nineteenth century. Theoretical expectations for the impact of population bottlenecks include the loss of genetic diversity and a loss of fitness (e.g. through a disruption of developmental stability); however, there are few direct demonstrations in natural populations. Here, we report on the comparison of archive samples collected prior to and following the NES population bottleneck. Measures of genetic diversity show a loss of variation consistent with expectations and suggest a strong disruption in the pattern of allele frequencies following the bottleneck. Measures of bilateral characters show an increase in fluctuating asymmetry.