The effect of isolation on Rock ptarmigan (Lagopus muta) population dynamics and genetics

Small, isolated or fragmented populations are exposed to a number of threats that can make them vulnerable to extinction including the loss of genetic variation, demographic and environmental stochasticity, and natural catastrophes (Shaffer 1981; Young and Clarke 2000; Beissinger and McCullough 2002). In addition, population persistence depends on the balance between emigration and immigration. The effects of these processes on population viability are well documented, both theoretically and empirically, although the relative role of each process is often debated (Lande 1993; Allendorf and Ryman 2002)...