Genetic consequences of population subdivision: the marsupial Micoureus paraguayanus (Mammalia: Didelphimorphia) as a case study

Habitat fragmentation may cause population subdivision, affecting genetic variation, leading to heterozygosity loss and increased inbreeding, and contributing to population extinction. However, some genetic models have shown that under some conditions, population subdivision can favor heterozygosity and allelic diversity, and small populations may adapt to inbreeding. Here I investigate the relationship between population subdivision and genetic diversity for the marsupial Micoureus paraguayanus (Tate, 1931) using the program Vortex. Hypothetical populations of 100 and 2000 individuals were pa...