This is a collaborative project between the National Park Service (NPS) and Oregon State University (OSU) for the purpose of studying the genetic connectivity of pika populations in five NPS units. OSU researchers will use individual and population-based genetic analyses to systematically estimate genetic distances among individuals and gene flow among patches or populations in NPS units in two very different habitats (talus vs. lava beds). Genetic distances among individuals or gene flow among groups reflect (in part) the degree that individuals are related and that populations are interacting via dispersal. Thus, researchers will use variation in genetic distance or gene flow to infer how landscapes (e.g., dispersal barriers, habitat [...]
