Climate change drives changes in organisms’ geographic ranges that can lead to shifts in population structure. Unisexual (all female) Ambystoma salamanders reproduce via kleptogenesis, resulting in ploidy-variable offspring. I analyzed genetic data of historic and modern-day unisexual and A. laterale samples from the University of Michigan’s E. S. George Reserve using epidermal cell nuclei measurements and microsatellite loci. I found that population composition has shifted away from the more northern-distributed A. laterale and toward populations dominated by unisexuals in five out of six ponds. There was a significant relationship between the proportion of A. laterale to unisexuals and pond size but not between the proportion of A. laterale and mean and maximum temperature, or canopy cover. Changes in population composition could help reveal the susceptibility of amphibians to climate change and whether adaptation can keep pace with rapid environmental change
","abstract_html":"<p>Climate change drives changes in organisms’ geographic ranges that can lead to shifts in population structure. Unisexual (all female) <em>Ambystoma</em> salamanders reproduce via kleptogenesis, resulting in ploidy-variable offspring. I analyzed genetic data of historic and modern-day unisexual and <em>A. laterale</em> samples from the University of Michigan’s E. S. George Reserve using epidermal cell nuclei measurements and microsatellite loci. I found that population composition has shifted away from the more northern-distributed <em>A. laterale</em> and toward populations dominated by unisexuals in five out of six ponds. There was a significant relationship between the proportion of <em>A. laterale</em> to unisexuals and pond size but not between the proportion of <em>A. laterale</em> and mean and maximum temperature, or canopy cover. Changes in population composition could help reveal the susceptibility of amphibians to climate change and whether adaptation can keep pace with rapid environmental change</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Mitchell, Kelsey B."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Open Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"Biology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Katherine Greenwald, Ph.D.","Kristin Judd, Ph.D.","Brian Connolly, Ph.D."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2020,"date_issued":"2020-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2020-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:40Z","subjects":["Ambystoma","Climate","Kleptogenesis","Microscopy","Ploidy","Unisexual","Ecology and Evolutionary Biology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1033","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Katherine Greenwald, Ph.D.","Kristin Judd, Ph.D.","Brian Connolly, Ph.D."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Mitchell, Kelsey B."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2020-09-22T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Biology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Ambystoma","Climate","Kleptogenesis","Microscopy","Ploidy","Unisexual","Ecology and Evolutionary Biology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1033"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Climate change drives changes in organisms’ geographic ranges that can lead to shifts in population structure. Unisexual (all female) Ambystoma salamanders reproduce via kleptogenesis, resulting in ploidy-variable offspring. I analyzed genetic data of historic and modern-day unisexual and A. laterale samples from the University of Michigan’s E. S. George Reserve using epidermal cell nuclei measurements and microsatellite loci. I found that population composition has shifted away from the more northern-distributed A. laterale and toward populations dominated by unisexuals in five out of six ponds. There was a significant relationship between the proportion of A. laterale to unisexuals and pond size but not between the proportion of A. laterale and mean and maximum temperature, or canopy cover. Changes in population composition could help reveal the susceptibility of amphibians to climate change and whether adaptation can keep pace with rapid environmental change
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Temporal changes in unisexual and sexual Ambystoma salamander populations in southeast Michigan"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Katherine Greenwald, Ph.D.","Kristin Judd, Ph.D.","Brian Connolly, Ph.D."],"dc:creator":["Mitchell, Kelsey B."],"dc:date.available":["2020-09-22T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Climate change drives changes in organisms’ geographic ranges that can lead to shifts in population structure. Unisexual (all female) Ambystoma salamanders reproduce via kleptogenesis, resulting in ploidy-variable offspring. I analyzed genetic data of historic and modern-day unisexual and A. laterale samples from the University of Michigan’s E. S. George Reserve using epidermal cell nuclei measurements and microsatellite loci. I found that population composition has shifted away from the more northern-distributed A. laterale and toward populations dominated by unisexuals in five out of six ponds. There was a significant relationship between the proportion of A. laterale to unisexuals and pond size but not between the proportion of A. laterale and mean and maximum temperature, or canopy cover. Changes in population composition could help reveal the susceptibility of amphibians to climate change and whether adaptation can keep pace with rapid environmental change
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1033"],"dc:subject":["Ambystoma","Climate","Kleptogenesis","Microscopy","Ploidy","Unisexual","Ecology and Evolutionary Biology"],"dc:title":["Temporal changes in unisexual and sexual Ambystoma salamander populations in southeast Michigan"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Biology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:40Z"}