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At-Risk Butterfly Captive Propagation Programs to Enhance Life History Knowledge and Effective Ex Situ Conservation Techniques
Published on: February 11, 2020
Value of captive populations for quantitative genetics research
Fanie Pelletier1, Denis Réale, Jason Watters
1Centre for Population Biology, Imperial College London, Silwood Park, Ascot, Berkshire SL5 7PY, UK. fanie.pelletier@usherbrooke.ca
Abstract:
Evolutionary biologists have usefully applied quantitative genetics methods to the pedigrees of wild animals to understand how natural selection shapes phenotypic diversity in nature. Despite recent reviews on the importance of rapid evolutionary changes for conservation biology and the increasing concerns about potentially adverse effects of adaptation to captivity for wild species, the integration of evolutionary-based knowledge into conservation programs remains elusive. Here we review the value of long-term pedigrees and associated phenotypic data of captive stocks for evolutionary research and conservation programs. We emphasize that using zoological records to assess quantitative genetics parameters represents a promising avenue to study adaptation to captivity.
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