The focus of molecular studies in North American pitvipers has been on species that warrant conservation concern, such as Timber (Crotalus horridus) and Massasauga rattlesnakes (Sistrurus catenatus). Scant effort has been directed towards the molecular ecology of the Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), other than to evaluate male reproduction in a laboratory setting and phylogenetic history. Thus, employing DNA-based molecular techniques to study the natural history of A. contortrix will broaden our knowledge of molecular ecology in North American pitvipers, and particularly in a non-threatened species that can serve as a surrogate for threatened and endangered taxa. Our study will also provide insight into the population genetics of a peripheral population to supplement previous studies regarding the Central-Peripheral Hypothesis and the importance of adaptive genetic variation in peripheral populations as a hedge for environmental change. We employed 23 polymorphic tetra-nucleotide microsatellite loci to explore population parameters in A. c. mokasen at its most northern distribution. Six admixed genetic clusters were identified across 9 dens with intra-den relatedness not significantly different from the population average. Mean male and female relatedness did not differ either within hibernacula or in the adult population. Molecular effective population size is 93.6 individuals (CI = 78.7-113.5) whereas adult census size from mark-recapture is 116 individuals. Molecular evidence for a recent genetic bottleneck was noted in the study population. Several litters with known mothers were assigned to more than one male, indicating multiple paternity, with significant paternal skew detected in one litter. Our study detailed population genetic parameters of a non-threatened pitviper that may be useful in comparative studies with threatened and endangered pitvipers, and is the first to document multiple paternity and paternal skew in a free-living population of Copperhead snakes.
","abstract_html":"<p>The focus of molecular studies in North American pitvipers has been on species that warrant conservation concern, such as Timber (<em>Crotalus horridus</em>) and Massasauga rattlesnakes (<em>Sistrurus catenatus</em>). Scant effort has been directed towards the molecular ecology of the Copperhead (<em>Agkistrodon contortrix</em>), other than to evaluate male reproduction in a laboratory setting and phylogenetic history. Thus, employing DNA-based molecular techniques to study the natural history of <em>A. contortrix</em> will broaden our knowledge of molecular ecology in North American pitvipers, and particularly in a non-threatened species that can serve as a surrogate for threatened and endangered taxa. Our study will also provide insight into the population genetics of a peripheral population to supplement previous studies regarding the Central-Peripheral Hypothesis and the importance of adaptive genetic variation in peripheral populations as a hedge for environmental change. We employed 23 polymorphic tetra-nucleotide microsatellite loci to explore population parameters in <em>A. c. mokasen</em> at its most northern distribution. Six admixed genetic clusters were identified across 9 dens with intra-den relatedness not significantly different from the population average. Mean male and female relatedness did not differ either within hibernacula or in the adult population. Molecular effective population size is 93.6 individuals (CI = 78.7-113.5) whereas adult census size from mark-recapture is 116 individuals. Molecular evidence for a recent genetic bottleneck was noted in the study population. Several litters with known mothers were assigned to more than one male, indicating multiple paternity, with significant paternal skew detected in one litter. Our study detailed population genetic parameters of a non-threatened pitviper that may be useful in comparative studies with threatened and endangered pitvipers, and is the first to document multiple paternity and paternal skew in a free-living population of Copperhead snakes.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Levine, Brenna Aaren"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science in Biology (MS)","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Douglas, Michael E.","Beaupre, Steven J."],"advisors":["Douglas, Marlis R."],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2013,"date_issued":"2013-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2013-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:00:28Z","subjects":["Biological sciences","Agkistrodon","Central-peripheral hypothesis","Genetic structure","Hibernacula","Microsatellite","Multiple paternity","Animal Studies","Molecular Genetics","Population Biology","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/687","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Douglas, Michael E.","Beaupre, Steven J."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Douglas, Marlis R."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Levine, Brenna Aaren"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2013"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2017-09-29T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science in Biology (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Biological sciences","Agkistrodon","Central-peripheral hypothesis","Genetic structure","Hibernacula","Microsatellite","Multiple paternity","Animal Studies","Molecular Genetics","Population Biology","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/687"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The focus of molecular studies in North American pitvipers has been on species that warrant conservation concern, such as Timber (Crotalus horridus) and Massasauga rattlesnakes (Sistrurus catenatus). Scant effort has been directed towards the molecular ecology of the Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), other than to evaluate male reproduction in a laboratory setting and phylogenetic history. Thus, employing DNA-based molecular techniques to study the natural history of A. contortrix will broaden our knowledge of molecular ecology in North American pitvipers, and particularly in a non-threatened species that can serve as a surrogate for threatened and endangered taxa. Our study will also provide insight into the population genetics of a peripheral population to supplement previous studies regarding the Central-Peripheral Hypothesis and the importance of adaptive genetic variation in peripheral populations as a hedge for environmental change. We employed 23 polymorphic tetra-nucleotide microsatellite loci to explore population parameters in A. c. mokasen at its most northern distribution. Six admixed genetic clusters were identified across 9 dens with intra-den relatedness not significantly different from the population average. Mean male and female relatedness did not differ either within hibernacula or in the adult population. Molecular effective population size is 93.6 individuals (CI = 78.7-113.5) whereas adult census size from mark-recapture is 116 individuals. Molecular evidence for a recent genetic bottleneck was noted in the study population. Several litters with known mothers were assigned to more than one male, indicating multiple paternity, with significant paternal skew detected in one litter. Our study detailed population genetic parameters of a non-threatened pitviper that may be useful in comparative studies with threatened and endangered pitvipers, and is the first to document multiple paternity and paternal skew in a free-living population of Copperhead snakes.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Genetic Structure of the Copperhead (Viperidae: Agkistrodon Contortrix Mokasen) at its Most Northern Distribution"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Douglas, Michael E.","Beaupre, Steven J."],"dc:contributor.advisor":["Douglas, Marlis R."],"dc:creator":["Levine, Brenna Aaren"],"dc:date":["2013"],"dc:date.available":["2017-09-29T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The focus of molecular studies in North American pitvipers has been on species that warrant conservation concern, such as Timber (Crotalus horridus) and Massasauga rattlesnakes (Sistrurus catenatus). Scant effort has been directed towards the molecular ecology of the Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), other than to evaluate male reproduction in a laboratory setting and phylogenetic history. Thus, employing DNA-based molecular techniques to study the natural history of A. contortrix will broaden our knowledge of molecular ecology in North American pitvipers, and particularly in a non-threatened species that can serve as a surrogate for threatened and endangered taxa. Our study will also provide insight into the population genetics of a peripheral population to supplement previous studies regarding the Central-Peripheral Hypothesis and the importance of adaptive genetic variation in peripheral populations as a hedge for environmental change. We employed 23 polymorphic tetra-nucleotide microsatellite loci to explore population parameters in A. c. mokasen at its most northern distribution. Six admixed genetic clusters were identified across 9 dens with intra-den relatedness not significantly different from the population average. Mean male and female relatedness did not differ either within hibernacula or in the adult population. Molecular effective population size is 93.6 individuals (CI = 78.7-113.5) whereas adult census size from mark-recapture is 116 individuals. Molecular evidence for a recent genetic bottleneck was noted in the study population. Several litters with known mothers were assigned to more than one male, indicating multiple paternity, with significant paternal skew detected in one litter. Our study detailed population genetic parameters of a non-threatened pitviper that may be useful in comparative studies with threatened and endangered pitvipers, and is the first to document multiple paternity and paternal skew in a free-living population of Copperhead snakes.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/687"],"dc:subject":["Biological sciences","Agkistrodon","Central-peripheral hypothesis","Genetic structure","Hibernacula","Microsatellite","Multiple paternity","Animal Studies","Molecular Genetics","Population Biology","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"],"dc:title":["Genetic Structure of the Copperhead (Viperidae: Agkistrodon Contortrix Mokasen) at its Most Northern Distribution"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science in Biology (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:00:28Z"}