The roles of demography and genetics in colonization

What is it about?

Declining species are commonly reintroduced into the wild. It is vital that such costly undertakings succeed, yet the fundamental characteristics of successful introductions remain elusive. We find that introductions with more individuals establish better initially, but new populations only grow and spread rapidly if they can escape inbreeding. Thus, beyond a certain threshold, releasing more individuals is less important than releasing a diversity of individuals.

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Why is it important?

We address a question of fundamental importance: what are the relative roles of number of founders vs. their genetic background in the founding of new populations? Because more founders typically harbor more genetic diversity, the two are often conflated. This study is one of few that experimentally disentangle the relative contributions of demography and genetics to colonization, and is unique, in that, it simultaneously tests the effect of the environment, as well as evaluates dispersal.