caa a22 4500 605527741 CHVBK 20210128100809.0 cr unu---uuuuu 210128e20150801xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/s10531-015-0923-7 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/s10531-015-0923-7 Island size and remoteness have major conservation significance for how spatial diversity is partitioned in skinks [Elektronische Daten] [E. Harradine, R. How, L. Schmitt, P. Spencer] Islands are often acknowledged as a refuge for species with declining mainland distributions. However, as the finite size of islands coupled with isolation can lead to genetic deterioration within insular populations, the study of these systems is of great interest to the conservation of biological diversity and persistence. The remote Kimberley region in Western Australia is facing increased impacts from invasive species, habitat fragmentation, grazing, mining and altered fire regimes, and many of the 2633 islands in the Kimberley have come into focus as a significant conservation resource. The Bar-shouldered skink (Ctenotus inornatus) is a habitat generalist that is highly abundant throughout the Kimberley and its diverse islands. This study encompasses 41 islands and seven mainland populations in the vast Kimberley environment, and genetically characterises them using 18 nuclear (microsatellite) markers. The island populations lost heterozygosity at a rate of 1% per kilometre from the mainland. Diversity was significantly lower on islands of small size (<500ha) and greater than 2km from the coastline. The scope of this study is unparalleled and addresses an important gap in our understanding of the genetic diversity throughout ecosystems. The findings illustrate how populations, operating within these pristine island systems, conform to the general rule of decreased genetic diversity with decreasing island area and increased distance from the mainland and identifies islands that may hold the most potential for conserving biodiversity. Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht, 2015 Bar-shouldered skink nationallicence Ctenotus inornatus nationallicence Island biogeography nationallicence Microsatellite nationallicence Heterozygosity nationallicence Harradine E. School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, 90 South St, Murdoch, 6150, Perth, WA, Australia aut How R. Western Australian Museum, Kew Street, 6986, Welshpool, WA, Australia aut Schmitt L. School of Anatomy, Physiology and Human Biology, The University of Western Australia, 6009, Crawley, WA, Australia aut Spencer P. School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, 90 South St, Murdoch, 6150, Perth, WA, Australia aut Biodiversity and Conservation Springer Netherlands 24/8(2015-08-01), 2011-2029 0960-3115 24:8<2011 2015 24 10531 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-015-0923-7 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-015-0923-7 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Harradine E. School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, 90 South St, Murdoch, 6150, Perth, WA, Australia aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- How R. Western Australian Museum, Kew Street, 6986, Welshpool, WA, Australia aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Schmitt L. School of Anatomy, Physiology and Human Biology, The University of Western Australia, 6009, Crawley, WA, Australia aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Spencer P. School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, 90 South St, Murdoch, 6150, Perth, WA, Australia aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Biodiversity and Conservation Springer Netherlands 24/8(2015-08-01), 2011-2029 0960-3115 24:8<2011 2015 24 10531