| I present the results of the analysis of 161 southern (Glaucomys volans) and northern (G. sabrinus) flying squirrel genotypes from nine locations within Ontario, Canada. I hypothesised that if southern flying squirrels were expanding their range and that if the expansion was rapid and recent, then little to no genetic differentiation would be detected. I also did a comparative study looking at the genetic structure of northern flying squirrels within the same region of Ontario. Individuals were genotyped at seven loci and using a Bayesian population clustering approach, I identified one discrete inferred genetic population for each species. Little evidence of isolation by distance was detected for either species. I concluded that each species grouped together and thus exhibited high gene flow among individuals within the study area. The high levels of gene flow found in southern flying squirrels supports the prediction of a recent and rapid range expansion. The high level of gene flow found in northern flying squirrels however was not expected as I predicted that there would be evidence of genetic structure since there has not been any corroborating evidence that this species has been expanding its range in Ontario.; Keywords. Southern flying squirrel, Glaucomys volans, northern flying squirrel, Glaucomys sabrinus, microsatellite, Bayesian clustering, assignment test, isolation by distance, range expansion. |
