Microsatellite variation in red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus)
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 25, 2026

Who is Who? Non-invasive Methods to Individually Sex and Mark Altricial Chicks
Published on: May 24, 2014
C Lenney Williams1, H J Homan, J J Johnston
1USDA, Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center, 4101 Porte Ave, Fort Collins, Colorado 80521, USA. christen.l.williams@usda.gov
Abstract:
Territorial male red-winged blackbirds from five locations in the United States and Canada were genotyped using a suite of six microsatellite loci. Each population possessed unique alleles, but numbers of alleles per locus (range = 7.3-8.8) and expected multilocus heterozygosities (range = 0.76-0.80) were similar in all populations. Significant overall allele frequency differences were detected between some population pairs, and some pairwise Fst values were significant (but small). However, Fst among populations, although significant, was also small (0.009). Despite revealing low levels of population structure, the high multilocus polymorphism indicates these loci will be valuable in the genetic analysis of behavior and reproductive strategies in this species.
Related Concept Videos
Complementation Tests
Organisms heterozygous for different mutations are crossed pairwise in all combinations. If present on different genes, the mutations can complement each other by providing the missing...
Position-effect Variegation
Background and Environment Affect Phenotype
An example of how genetic background affects phenotype can be seen in horses. The Extension gene in horses is responsible for their coat color. A wild-type gene (EE) produces black pigment in the coat, while a mutant gene (ee) produces red pigment. A...
What is Population Genetics?
Hardy-Weinberg Principle
Mutation, Gene Flow, and Genetic Drift

