This is a collaborative research endevor with Dr. Brendan Kelly of
University of Alaska Southeast.
Effective management of exploited populations depends first and foremost on proper identification of stock structure. Accurate estimates
of population size and harvest levels also are vital, but their value is minimized if stock boundaries are poorly known. We are investigating
stock structure of the ringed seal (Phoca hispida), an arctic species heavily exploited for subsistence and potentially
threatened by industrial development and climate change.
Mitochondrial and microsatellite DNA are extracted and amplified from skin cells and hairs shed on the pack ice.
These data are then combined with results from study of inter annual movements of
ringed seals using gps tagged animals, the genetic data will be used to test the hypothesis that ringed seals are philopatric and to determine stock structure.
Methods developed in this study are expected to have further application to other ice-associated seals.
Objectives:
(1) We propose to investigate stock structure of ringed seals in Alaska by sampling the genetic structure of the population at breeding locations.
(2) We will examine the genetic diversity among ringed seals from three sites in northern Alaska: Prudhoe Bay, Pt. Barrow, and Peard Bay and compare them
to samples from the Canadian Beaufort Sea and the Baltic Sea to test the hypothesis that ringed seals are philopatric.
(3) The results will be used to devise a comprehensive sampling scheme to determine stock structure throughout Alaskan waters.
(4) We also shall develop protocols, applicable to other ice-associated seals, to collect and analyze mitochondrial and micro-satellite DNA from shed tissues.
Funding provided by North Pacific Research Board.
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