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Snowy Plover Genetics
Completed
Snowy plovers that inhabit the western coast of North America currently are listed under the Endangered Species Act as a distinct population segment from other snowy plovers that inhabit the Great Basin and southeastern United States. An analysis of genetic information was conducted to examine whether there were significant genetic divisions, for example subspecies, among snowy plovers in North America and the Caribbean. Using snowy plover data from up to 15 breeding areas and from 155 different snowy plovers, few genetic differences were detected within the continental United States, suggesting there are no separate subspecies within the United States. More specifically, there was no evidence that the western snowy plovers were genetically distinct from those in the Great Basin. Other research has described population characteristics that distinguish the coastal population from inland birds, and this information can be combined with the genetics information in considering taxonomic and management decisions.
Gorman, L., Haig, S.M., 2002, Distribution and abundance of snowy plovers in eastern North America, the Caribbean, and the Bahamas: Journal of Field Ornithology, v. 73, no. 1, p. 38-52. [Abs] [FullText] Catalog No: 1076 Mabee, T.J., Plissner, J.H., Haig, S.M., Goossen, J.P., 2001, Winter distributions of North American Plovers in the Laguna Madre regions of Tamaulipas, Mexico and Texas, USA: Wader Study Group Bulletin, v. 94, p. 39-43. [FullText] Catalog No: 972 Gorman, L., 2000, Population Differentiation among Snowy Plovers (Charadrius alexandrinus) in North America-- M.S. thesis: Corvallis, OR, Oregon State University, 46 p. Catalog No: 767
Snowy Plover Distribution and Abundance East of the Rocky Mountains
Snowy Plover Inter Simple Sequence Repeat (ISSR)
Snowy Plover Mitochondrial Control Region Sequence Data
Haig, Susan M. - Supervisory Research Wildlife Biologist
Phone: 541-750-7482
Email: susan_haig@usgs.gov
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