Thursday, April 5, 2007

Johnson and Black 2006.

Johnson, M.S. and R. Black. 2006. Islands increase genetic subdivision and disrupt patterns of connectivity of intertidal snails in a complex archipelago. Evolution. 60(12): 2498-2506.

Because my work involves the biogeography of the malay archipelago, my supervisor thought this paper may be important for me to read. Unfortunately it really does not relate to my work at all because Johnson and Black's research is based on marine patterns, whereas my work deals with terrestrial patterns. Nonetheless, I read the paper and these are the important bits:

1) the authors wanted to find out what local conditions might favour the isolation of populations of marine species with planktonic dispersal.

2) allozyme variation among 35 populations of the intertidal snail, Austrocochlea constricta indicated highly localized populations in the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Australia.

3) islands are important for retention of locally produced larvae and disruption of patterns of connectivity.

4) models of gene flow in marine larval populations need to take islands into account.

This paper rated 8 out of 10 on the boring scale (but this may be because it does not relate to my work at all).

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