Re: Kisatchie Corns : the debate rages on

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Posted by KSF on July 11, 1999 at 16:13:10:

In Reply to: Re: Kisatchie Corns : the debate rages on posted by KJ on July 11, 1999 at 13:09:34:

If the population of snakes is isolated and remains so, it will no longer be an intergrade. By definition an intergrade population must have gene flow with adjacent subspecies. Once this stops, the isolated population may drift away on its own evolutionary trajectory.

If an intergrade population continues to have gene flow with an adjacent subspecies, it can not have an independent evolutionary trajectory. The field guide I have does not show eastern corns coming into contact with Kisatchies. You locals probably have better information than the guides. If there is indeed a population of eastern corns adjacent to the Kisatchie corns, then the Kisatchies are standard intergrades. If there is no longer such a population of eastern corns, then the Kisatchies have gene flow with emoryi only. In this case, they can become more like the Emory's rats, or retain some phenotypic distinction. In the latter case, they should be considered a clinal variant of emoryi.

KSF

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: If the population of snakes is isolated and remains so, it will no longer be an intergrade. By definition an intergrade population must have gene flow with adjacent subspecies. Once this stops, the isolated population may drift away on its own evolutionary trajectory. : If an intergrade population continues to have gene flow with an adjacent subspecies, it can not have an independent evolutionary trajectory. The field guide I have does not show eastern corns coming into contact with Kisatchies. You locals probably have better information than the guides. If there is indeed a population of eastern corns adjacent to the Kisatchie corns, then the Kisatchies are standard intergrades. If there is no longer such a population of eastern corns, then the Kisatchies have gene flow with emoryi only. In this case, they can become more like the Emory's rats, or retain some phenotypic distinction. In the latter case, they should be considered a clinal variant of emoryi. : KSF

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