Elucidating the conservation status of Michigan's red-eared slider (trachemys scripta elegans): A phylogeographic approach

<p>The geographic origin of Michigan’s Trachemys scripta elegans has been a contentious subject since its first description in 1934. At that time two explanations were proposed: 1) populations of T. s. elegans are native to Michigan and naturally expanded their range from Ohio and Indiana; or 2) populations are non-native and have been introduced by humans via the pet-trade from throughout the United States. To differentiate between these possibilities, I compare the genetic structure of six populations throughout Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio, using six microsatellite markers. No isolation-by-distance was detected and model-based statistics support two genetic clusters with five populations from Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana forming one cluster and a single Michigan population forming a second. These results indicate that some of Michigan's populations of T. s. elegans are composed of released pets from geographically distant sources, while others are either native relicts or have been introduced from nearby populations.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (MS)

Level thesis:degree_level

Open Access Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Biology

Year dc:date.available

2015

Author dc:creator

• Terry, Patrick J

Contributors dc:contributor

• Katherine Greenwald
• Margaret Hanes
• Allen Kurta

• Michigan
• Microsatellite
• pet-trade
• Phylogeography
• population genetics
• Red-eared Slider
• Biology
• Life Sciences

Repository record dc:identifier

https://commons.emich.edu/theses/783

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:commons.emich.edu:theses-2166