Abstract
Genetic rescue has now been attempted in several threatened species, but the contribution of genetics per se to any increase in population health can be hard to identify. Rescue is expected to be particularly useful when individuals are introduced into small isolated populations with low levels of genetic variation. Here we consider such a situation by documenting genetic rescue in the mountain pygmy possum, Burramys parvus. Rapid population recovery occurred in the target population after the introduction of a small number of males from a large genetically diverged population. Initial hybrid fitness was more than two-fold higher than non-hybrids; hybrid animals had a larger body size, and female hybrids produced more pouch young and lived longer. Genetic rescue likely contributed to the largest population size ever being recorded at this site. These data point to genetic rescue as being a potentially useful option for the recovery of small threatened populations.
Highlights
Genetic rescue has been attempted in several threatened species, but the contribution of genetics per se to any increase in population health can be hard to identify
Restoration was used to link favourable patches by creating boulderfields and through revegetation (Supplementary Fig. 2). These measures were associated with a rapid increase in population size of B. parvus in the main habitat area at Mount Buller, the Federation-Wombat bowl, and we show that genetic rescue likely contributed to this increase
Population size for the Federation-Wombat bowl was estimated based on the capture–recapture data from annual spring monitoring, where 70-96% of the adult population is captured in most years
Summary
Genetic rescue has been attempted in several threatened species, but the contribution of genetics per se to any increase in population health can be hard to identify. Genetic rescue likely contributed to the largest population size ever being recorded at this site These data point to genetic rescue as being a potentially useful option for the recovery of small threatened populations. The southern population is restricted to Mount Buller and contained entirely within the Mount Buller Alpine Resort (Supplementary Fig. 2) This population is regarded as highly threatened, having undergone a rapid decline in genetic diversity that paralleled a demographic collapse[12]. Restoration was used to link favourable patches by creating boulderfields (prime habitat for females) and through revegetation (secondary habitat for males) (Supplementary Fig. 2) These measures were associated with a rapid increase in population size of B. parvus in the main habitat area at Mount Buller, the Federation-Wombat bowl, and we show that genetic rescue likely contributed to this increase
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