Conservation genetics for insects.

Abstract

AbstractThe implications of the following aspects of conservation genetics on insect conservation are discussed: genetic sources of extinction risk; effects of reduced genetic variation and increased homozygosity on population size; sources of variation in effective population size in insects in the field (variation in population size, variation in family size, and unequal sex ratio); occurrence of inbreeding depression in insects in the laboratory and in the wild; and ability of insects to cope with environmental changes. The conservation genetics of Coenagrion mercuriale is briefly covered.