Download or read book Genetic Diversity Inbreeding and Diet Variation in an Endangered Rattlesnake the Eastern Massasauga Sistrurus C Catenatus written by James Ernest Chiucchi and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 139 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Chapter 3, levels of inbreeding were accessed in these populations and I tested for the presence of a heterozygosity-fitness correlation between individual multilocus heterozygosity (MLH) and an estimate of fitness, body condition This analysis revealed significant variation in mean MLH and mean body condition among populations but no correlation between them. This result was true even after controlling for non-genetic factors such as sex, season of capture and year of capture. Tests for inbreeding were also negative and suggest snakes are mating randomly within each population.
Download or read book Landscape Genetics Demographic Models and Conservation of the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus Catenatus written by Scott Anthony Martin and published by . This book was released on 2022 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Successful conservation actions require a detailed understanding of how individuals interact with their environment. For many threatened and endangered species, anthropogenic changes to their landscape have created barriers separating formerly connected populations. This isolation can have profound impacts on the long-term viability of these populations and ultimately the conservation status of the species. For example, as populations become more isolated, they may enter the “extinction vortex” where small populations experience high levels of inbreeding and genetic drift depressing demographic rates, driving the population into a positive feedback loop that can lead to a decline in numbers and eventual extinction. However, if barriers to movement are not complete, even infrequent dispersal between populations can counter potential vortex effects by bolstering local population sizes and introducing new genetic material. Determining if populations are connected via dispersal or if they are isolated is a difficult question with no single best approach. For the Federally threatened Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnakes, Sistrurus catenatus, their reclusive, sedentary lifestyle make many field-based methods for generating this information difficult and unreliable without unrealistic investments of time and resources. In my thesis, I used information from DNA single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from neutral genetic markers to address the following three fundamental questions regarding how S. catenatus move through their landscape in Ohio and how this information can be used to evaluate proposed activities for their conservation: (1) Do snakes in scattered habitat patches across Northeastern Ohio belong to a single connected population, a metapopulation with infrequent dispersal, or isolated populations? I used 1000s of DNA SNPs to reconstruct a pedigree across 86 individuals and showed that no individuals have moved between habitat patches separated by more than a few meters in the last three generations. This is despite known movements of over 2 km by individual snakes in other populations of this species found in more continuous habitat. From these results, I concluded that S. catenatus in NE Ohio is split into five genetically distinct populations in an area smaller than 15 km2 with no recent connectivity. (2) What landscape features drive the observed lack of connectivity? I next used the same SNP dataset with a second SNP dataset collected from 103 S. catenatus from a large population in Central Ohio to model landcover features that potentially impact resistance to movement between local habitat patches. I found that an inherent landscape feature, elevation, and contemporary landcover, specifically roads, were the main barriers to connectivity. I then used the resistance maps and pedigrees for S. catenatus populations in NE Ohio and Central Ohio to estimate the resistance values between all pairs of closely related individuals and used those to estimate dispersal kernels around each population. The kernels results reinforced our previous finding of no contemporary connectivity between S. catenatus populations in this region. (3) How would proposed management actions impact the demographic viability of S. catenatus in NE Ohio? The habitat occupied by populations of S. catenatus in NE Ohio has been targets of active management to prevent vegetation succession, and there has been increased interest in additional habitat management. Suggested management actions for individual S. catenatus populations have focused on increasing habitat sizes, increasing the frequency of woody vegetation removal, creating habitat between populations, and translocating snakes between populations. I built forward-in-time simulations of population trends under current management and five alternative management activities using resistance maps that I previously developed in Population Viability Analysis (PVA) models. I found that connectivity improvements via the formation of new habitats (and ideally new populations) between the current populations or a hybrid connectivity/translocation strategy offered the greatest improvement towards both overall population size and the number of occupied patches. These connectivity models were superior to the base scenario representing no changes to management. Overall, my research has generated novel tools and approaches based on landscape genetics and demographic modeling for conservation of endangered and threatened species in fragmented landscapes. When applied to S. catenatus population is in NE Ohio, these approaches have provided new and significant insights on contemporary population structure in S. catenatus in NE Ohio, how the landscape created the observed patterns, and how this information can be used to generate management recommendations to promote the long-term persistence of this threatened reptile.
Download or read book Using Microsatellite DNA to Genetically Identify a Potential Hybrid Population of Endangered Massasauga Rattlesnakes Sistrurus Catenatus in North Central Missouri written by Michael Joseph Murphy and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abstract: DNA-based genetic techniques can be used to identify individuals in wild populations whose ancestry is uncertain. The massasauga rattlesnake is a small rattlesnake found from central New York to southeastern Arizona. It is currently described as consisting of three subspecies: the eastern massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus catenatus), the western massasauga (Sistrurus c. tergeminus) and the desert massasauga (Sistrurus c. edwardsii). Due to morphological similarities between eastern and western massasaugas in north central Missouri (where the range of S. c. catenatus meets that of S. c. tergeminus), there is debate over the species identity of individuals in this population and the possibility that it is a hybrid population has been suggested. Here, I use microsatellite DNA from western and eastern massasaugas to determine the species identity of a central Missouri population. To do this, I used a combination of clustering analysis and distance-based phylogenetic analysis to determine the relationships among the western, eastern, and central Missouri populations. Cluster-based analysis using the program Structure showed that the central Missouri population clustered strongly with the western (tergeminus) populations. Distance-based phylogenetic analysis of populations also grouped the Missouri population with western populations and analysis of all individuals grouped the central Missouri individuals together with the western individuals. These results show that the western massasauga and central Missouri population are genetically similar, and both are highly differentiated from eastern massasauga populations. Therefore this data strongly suggests that the central Missouri population is Sistrurus c. tergeminus. This has the implications that one of the criteria for special protection status of this population has been removed and that the range of S. c. catenatus does not extend west of the Mississippi River which supports the possibility that the Mississippi River acts as a phylogeographical barrier for massasauga rattlesnakes.
Download or read book Modeling Habitat Suitability and Population Demographics of the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake in Managed Lands in Southwestern Michigan written by Robyn Leah Bailey and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Influence of Landscape on Genetic Structure of a Threatened Reptile written by Michelle Francis DiLeo and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Understanding the impacts of both natural and anthropogenic landscape features on genetic diversity, population structure and connectivity has important implications for conservation of species living in fragmented environments. Here, I combine population genetic data, detailed land cover information, and computer simulations to explore how landscape shapes genetic structure across two regional populations of the threatened eastern massasauga rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus catenatus) in Ontario, Canada: one along the eastern shores of Georgian Bay and the other largely confined to the northern half of the Bruce Peninsula. First I used spatial Bayesian assignment to quantify the genetic population structure within each regional population. I found marked subpopulation structure within eastern Georgian Bay with differentiation of island and mainland snakes, a north-south split within the mainland coinciding with the town of Parry Sound, and evidence of further subdivision within the cluster of snakes north of Parry Sound. In contrast I found no population subdivision within the mainland of the Bruce Peninsula, but genetic distinction of mainland and island snakes. Next, I identified the landscape features that shape spatial genetic structure within regional populations. In eastern Georgian Bay I found local variation in the effect of landscape on populations. North of Parry Sound I found no effect of landscape on inter-individual genetic differentiation, but a strong pattern of isolation-by-distance. In contrast I found that both open water and roads restrict gene flow of snakes south of Parry Sound. I found no evidence of isolation-by-distance or that landscape shape genetic structure within the Bruce Peninsula. Finally I used individual-based, spatially explicit simulations to identify the lag-time associated with the detection of contemporary landscape feature effects on genetic structure of massasaugas, and explore the consequences of using spatially correlated land cover elements in landscape genetic analyses. I found that the genetic consequences of roads could be detected within 2-12 generations when population sizes were small or juvenile dispersal was low. However, I also found that roads could be spuriously identified as impediments to gene flow when spatially correlated features such as water are included in genetic models.
Download or read book Status of the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore written by National Park Service and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2013-08-28 with total page 54 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The eastern massasauga rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus catenatus) is a candidate for federal listing as a threatened or endangered Distinct Population Segment (DPS) (U.S. FWS 2003). Although the massasauga rattlesnake is thought to be in decline throughout much of its range, only the eastern subspecies (Sistrurus c. catenatus) is currently under consideration for listing. The eastern subspecies has been described as historically ranging from central New York and southern Ontario, southwest to Iowa and Missouri (Johnson 1995; Minton 2001). This eastern subspecies encompasses all S. catenatus residing north and east of the Missouri River.
Download or read book Filling in the Gaps in Demography Phenology and Life History of the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus Catenatus written by Eric T. Hileman and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 147 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Eastern Massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus) is a small, cryptic North American rattlesnake with a distribution centered on the Great Lakes. It is listed as threatened and endangered in Canada. In the United States, ongoing population declines due to habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, and harvest led to the species being listed as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act in 2016. Estimates of population parameters are essential for modeling population dynamics, assessing population viability, and elucidating the effects of land management practices on population persistence. However, conservation of Eastern Massasauga populations has been hampered by information gaps related to life history and hibernation phenology. In addition, key demographic parameter estimates are lacking for populations near the range center of the species where the largest number of Eastern Massasauga populations may still persist. Consequently, biologically realistic population viability analyses and management guidelines related to the timing of habitat management activities have been difficult to develop. In this study, I address these data gaps by providing 1) a range-wide synthesis to evaluate geographic variation in life history traits, 2) critically needed demographic estimates, population viability analysis, and prescribed burn simulations from a centrally located population, and 3) a predictive hibernation ingress/egress model to assist managers in minimizing mortality during ground-disturbing land management activities. To address life history data gaps, I compiled data from 47 study sites representing 38 counties across the range. I used multimodel inference and general linear models with geographic coordinates and annual climate normals as explanatory variables to clarify patterns of variation in life history traits. I found strong evidence for geographic variation in six of nine life history variables. Adult female snout-vent length and neonate mass increased with increasing mean annual precipitation. Litter size decreased with increasing mean temperature, and the size--fecundity relationship and age zero growth both increased with increasing latitude. The proportion of gravid females also increased with increasing latitude, but this relationship may be the result of geographically varying detection bias. Next, I used eight years of data and contemporary capture-recapture and matrix model methods to estimate population parameters for an Eastern Massasauga population near the range center of the species in Cass County, Michigan. From 2009--2016, 826 Eastern Massasaugas were captured 1,776 times. On average, sexual maturity occurred at age three in both sexes. Mean litter size was 7.6. Annual survival increased with increasing age (age zero=0.38, age 1=0.65, age 2=0.76, age ≥3 females=0.71), but declined slightly in age ≥3 males (0.66). Abundance estimates ranged from 84--140 adults and annual reproductive frequency was 0.44. Using these estimates, I developed a baseline population projection model to evaluate population persistence in Cass County and the degree to which increased mortality during spring, fall, and late fall prescribed burns might affect population growth 50 and 100 years into the future if current conditions persist. The baseline model, which incorporated current prescribed fire practices, indicated a stable population with only a 1% probability of extinction over 100 years, suggesting that management practices at this site are sustainable if they remain unchanged. Simulations of conservative increases in mortality due to fire changed the probability of extinction little over 50 years (0.000--0.003), but increased probability of extinction up to 14% over 100 years in the most pessimistic prescribed burn scenario. Last, I installed on-site weather stations at seven Eastern Massasauga study sites in Iowa, Illinois, Ohio (2 sites), and Michigan (3 sites). I identified dates of spring emergence using a combination of intensive visual searches, radio telemetry, and camera traps. I used observation data and soil temperature data from logging stations to validate a predictive egress phenology model and clarify geographic patterns of variation in the timing of Eastern Massasauga emergence. Emergence from hibernation was clearly associated with a reversal in soil temperature gradients although there were sometimes multiple reversals with hibernation egress lagging the first reversal by a week or more. Based on these patterns, I provide recommendations that minimize the risk for Eastern Massasauga mortality and avoid unnecessary curtailment of the burn season. This model has the potential to predict when prescribed fire or ground-disturbing management activities are least likely to cause direct snake mortality.
Download or read book Using Human Dimensions Insights to Improve Conservation Efforts for the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus Catenatus Catenatus in Michigan and the Timber Rattlesnake Crotalus Horridus Horridus in Minnesota written by Rebecca Ann Christoffel and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 612 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Status Report on the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus C Catenatus in Canada written by Wayne F. Weller and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Status Report on the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus C Catenatus in Canada written by Wayne F. Weller and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Variation in the Diet of Sistrurus Catenatus Massasauga with Emphasis on Sistrurus Catenatus Edwardsii Desert Massasauga written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 464 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Endangered and Threatened Species Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Status Us Fish and Wildlife Service Regulation Fws 2018 Edition written by The Law The Law Library and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-10-24 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Endangered and Threatened Species - Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake - Status (US Fish and Wildlife Service Regulation) (FWS) (2018 Edition) The Law Library presents the complete text of the Endangered and Threatened Species - Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake - Status (US Fish and Wildlife Service Regulation) (FWS) (2018 Edition). Updated as of May 29, 2018 We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), determine threatened species status under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended, for the eastern massasauga rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus), a rattlesnake species found in 10 States and 1 Canadian Province. The rule adds this species to the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. We have also determined that the designation of critical habitat for the eastern massasauga rattlesnake is not prudent due to an increased risk of collection and persecution. This book contains: - The complete text of the Endangered and Threatened Species - Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake - Status (US Fish and Wildlife Service Regulation) (FWS) (2018 Edition) - A table of contents with the page number of each section
Download or read book Genetic Population Structure by Microsatellite DNA Analysis of the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus Catenatus Catenatus at Carlyle Lake written by Michael A. Andre and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Status Report on the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus C Catenatus in Canada written by Cook, Francis R. (Francis Russell) and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Ecology and Morphological Variation of the Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus Catenatus written by Howard Keith Reinert and published by . This book was released on 1978 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Reproductive Ecology of the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus C Catenatus at Carlyle Lake Illinois written by Benjamin Christopher Jellen and published by . This book was released on 2005 with total page 110 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Draft Status Report on the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Sistrurus C Catenatus in Canada written by Wayne Frederick Weller and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
