Re:Six-Legged Giant Finds Secret Hideaway, Hides for 80 Year...
by masklinn on Wednesday March 11, 2015 @06:32AM
(#9183413)
IANAB but
> there is a critical mass under which there isn't enough genetic diversity to preserve the species (I've seen ~30 quoted for some rare mammals)
The Blue Book ("Viable Populations for Conservation") puts it between 50 and 1000 individuals for 95% probability of survival over 100 years, but it's highly variable between species and ecosystems on both intrinsic (r-strategy which you quoted) and historical grounds: for the second case, the Mauritius Kestrel was brought back from an effective population of 2 mated pairs. But its ecosystem has a carrying capacity of under 1000 individuals and it had already gone through several genetic bottlenecks.
The weta are r-strategist anyway, Poor Knights wetas have clutches of 200~300 eggs.
> there is a critical mass under which there isn't enough genetic diversity to preserve the species (I've seen ~30 quoted for some rare mammals)
The Blue Book ("Viable Populations for Conservation") puts it between 50 and 1000 individuals for 95% probability of survival over 100 years, but it's highly variable between species and ecosystems on both intrinsic (r-strategy which you quoted) and historical grounds: for the second case, the Mauritius Kestrel was brought back from an effective population of 2 mated pairs. But its ecosystem has a carrying capacity of under 1000 individuals and it had already gone through several genetic bottlenecks.
The weta are r-strategist anyway, Poor Knights wetas have clutches of 200~300 eggs.