Genetic and Environmental Indicators of Climate Change Vulnerability for Desert Bighorn Sheep
Assessments of organisms’ vulnerability to potential climatic shifts are increasingly common. Such assessments are often conducted at the species level and focused primarily on the magnitude of anticipated climate change (i.e., climate exposure). However, wildlife management would benefit from popul...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2020-08-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fevo.2020.00279/full |
| _version_ | 1818436515594764288 |
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| author | Tyler G. Creech Clinton W. Epps John D. Wehausen Rachel S. Crowhurst Jef R. Jaeger Kathleen Longshore Brandon Holton William B. Sloan Ryan J. Monello |
| author_facet | Tyler G. Creech Clinton W. Epps John D. Wehausen Rachel S. Crowhurst Jef R. Jaeger Kathleen Longshore Brandon Holton William B. Sloan Ryan J. Monello |
| author_sort | Tyler G. Creech |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Assessments of organisms’ vulnerability to potential climatic shifts are increasingly common. Such assessments are often conducted at the species level and focused primarily on the magnitude of anticipated climate change (i.e., climate exposure). However, wildlife management would benefit from population-level assessments that also incorporate measures of local or regional potential for organismal adaptation to change. Estimates of genetic diversity, gene flow, and landscape connectivity can address this need and complement climate exposure estimates to establish management priorities at broad to local scales. We provide an example of this holistic approach for desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis nelsoni) within and surrounding lands administered by the U.S. National Park Service. We used genetic and environmental data from 62 populations across the southwestern U.S. to delineate genetic structure, evaluate relationships between genetic diversity and isolation, and estimate relative climate vulnerability for populations as a function of five variables associated with species’ responses to climate change: genetic diversity, genetic isolation, geographic isolation, forward climate velocity within a population’s habitat patch (a measure of geographic movement rate required for an organism to maintain constant climate conditions), and maximum elevation within the habitat patch (a measure of current climate stress, as lower maximum elevation is associated with higher temperature, lower precipitation, and lower population persistence). Genetic structure analyses revealed a high-level division between populations in southeastern Utah and populations in the remainder of the study area, which were further differentiated into four lower-level genetic clusters. Genetic diversity decreased with population isolation, whereas genetic differentiation increased, but these patterns were stronger for native populations than for translocated populations. Populations exhibited large variation in predicted vulnerability across the study area with respect to all variables, but native populations occupying relatively intact landscapes, such as Death Valley and Grand Canyon national parks, had the lowest overall vulnerability. These results provide local and regional context for conservation and management decisions regarding bighorn populations in a changing climate. Our study further demonstrates how assessments combining multiple factors could allow a more integrated response, such as increasing efforts to maintain connectivity and thus potential for adaptation in areas experiencing rapid climate change. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T17:10:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-247d67523a854382b32eb4da2fd5c806 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-701X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T17:10:00Z |
| publishDate | 2020-08-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-247d67523a854382b32eb4da2fd5c8062022-12-21T22:53:37ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution2296-701X2020-08-01810.3389/fevo.2020.00279519454Genetic and Environmental Indicators of Climate Change Vulnerability for Desert Bighorn SheepTyler G. Creech0Clinton W. Epps1John D. Wehausen2Rachel S. Crowhurst3Jef R. Jaeger4Kathleen Longshore5Brandon Holton6William B. Sloan7Ryan J. Monello8Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, United StatesDepartment of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, United StatesWhite Mountain Research Center, University of California, Bishop, CA, United StatesDepartment of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, United StatesSchool of Life Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, United StatesWestern Ecological Research Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Henderson, NV, United StatesGrand Canyon National Park, National Park Service, Grand Canyon, AZ, United StatesSoutheast Utah Group, National Park Service, Moab, UT, United StatesPacific Island Network, Inventory and Monitoring Program, National Park Service, Hawaii National Park, Hawaii, HI, United StatesAssessments of organisms’ vulnerability to potential climatic shifts are increasingly common. Such assessments are often conducted at the species level and focused primarily on the magnitude of anticipated climate change (i.e., climate exposure). However, wildlife management would benefit from population-level assessments that also incorporate measures of local or regional potential for organismal adaptation to change. Estimates of genetic diversity, gene flow, and landscape connectivity can address this need and complement climate exposure estimates to establish management priorities at broad to local scales. We provide an example of this holistic approach for desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis nelsoni) within and surrounding lands administered by the U.S. National Park Service. We used genetic and environmental data from 62 populations across the southwestern U.S. to delineate genetic structure, evaluate relationships between genetic diversity and isolation, and estimate relative climate vulnerability for populations as a function of five variables associated with species’ responses to climate change: genetic diversity, genetic isolation, geographic isolation, forward climate velocity within a population’s habitat patch (a measure of geographic movement rate required for an organism to maintain constant climate conditions), and maximum elevation within the habitat patch (a measure of current climate stress, as lower maximum elevation is associated with higher temperature, lower precipitation, and lower population persistence). Genetic structure analyses revealed a high-level division between populations in southeastern Utah and populations in the remainder of the study area, which were further differentiated into four lower-level genetic clusters. Genetic diversity decreased with population isolation, whereas genetic differentiation increased, but these patterns were stronger for native populations than for translocated populations. Populations exhibited large variation in predicted vulnerability across the study area with respect to all variables, but native populations occupying relatively intact landscapes, such as Death Valley and Grand Canyon national parks, had the lowest overall vulnerability. These results provide local and regional context for conservation and management decisions regarding bighorn populations in a changing climate. Our study further demonstrates how assessments combining multiple factors could allow a more integrated response, such as increasing efforts to maintain connectivity and thus potential for adaptation in areas experiencing rapid climate change.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fevo.2020.00279/fullconnectivitygenetic diversitygenetic structureOvis canadensisvulnerability |
| spellingShingle | Tyler G. Creech Clinton W. Epps John D. Wehausen Rachel S. Crowhurst Jef R. Jaeger Kathleen Longshore Brandon Holton William B. Sloan Ryan J. Monello Genetic and Environmental Indicators of Climate Change Vulnerability for Desert Bighorn Sheep Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution connectivity genetic diversity genetic structure Ovis canadensis vulnerability |
| title | Genetic and Environmental Indicators of Climate Change Vulnerability for Desert Bighorn Sheep |
| title_full | Genetic and Environmental Indicators of Climate Change Vulnerability for Desert Bighorn Sheep |
| title_fullStr | Genetic and Environmental Indicators of Climate Change Vulnerability for Desert Bighorn Sheep |
| title_full_unstemmed | Genetic and Environmental Indicators of Climate Change Vulnerability for Desert Bighorn Sheep |
| title_short | Genetic and Environmental Indicators of Climate Change Vulnerability for Desert Bighorn Sheep |
| title_sort | genetic and environmental indicators of climate change vulnerability for desert bighorn sheep |
| topic | connectivity genetic diversity genetic structure Ovis canadensis vulnerability |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fevo.2020.00279/full |
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