Ruppert Laura-Sophia, Staab Michael, Rappa Nolan J, Frey Julian, Segelbacher Gernot
Chair of Wildlife Ecology and Management Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg Freiburg Germany.
Institute of Ecology Leuphana University of Lüneburg Lüneburg Germany.
Ecol Evol. 2025 Apr 18;15(4):e71294. doi: 10.1002/ece3.71294. eCollection 2025 Apr.
Habitat connectivity and maintaining gene flow between populations is central for long-term population persistence and is an essential element in conservation planning. However, data on dispersal ability and genetic population structure is lacking for almost all insect species. We here investigate if forest localities in the temperate, central European Black Forest are connected by gene flow. For this, we used partial genome sequencing on specimens of the solitary cavity-nesting wasp (Hymenoptera, Pompilidae), a forest specialist that primarily nests in deadwood. We assumed that spatially uneven availability of standing deadwood has led to genetic substructuring. Contrary to our expectations, we did not find signs of population structure either on a regional or an individual level. Hence, for this solitary wasp species, dispersal seems not to be restricted across the Black Forest study sites (approximately 90 km distance) and none of the investigated environmental variables impacted genetic connectivity.
栖息地连通性以及维持种群间的基因流动对于种群的长期存续至关重要，也是保护规划中的一个基本要素。然而，几乎所有昆虫物种都缺乏关于扩散能力和遗传种群结构的数据。我们在此研究中欧温带黑森林地区的森林地点是否通过基因流动相互连接。为此，我们对独居的树洞筑巢黄蜂（膜翅目，蛛蜂科）的标本进行了部分基因组测序，这种黄蜂是一种主要在枯木中筑巢的森林专家物种。我们假设现存枯木在空间上分布不均导致了遗传亚结构的形成。与我们的预期相反，我们在区域或个体层面均未发现种群结构的迹象。因此，对于这种独居黄蜂物种而言，其扩散似乎不受黑森林研究地点（距离约90公里）的限制，且所调查的环境变量均未影响遗传连通性。
