I am investigating population structure in Leadbeater’s possum (
Gymnobelideus leadbeateri) using microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA analyses.
Leadbeater's possum is a small non-gliding arboreal marsupial that is restricted to a small region of Victoria. It is Victoria’s faunal emblem and is currently listed as endangered under both state and federal legislation.
For this project, genetic material was kindly provided by several collaborators from across the range of the species. Dr Dan Harley collected tissue from a small isolated population at Yellingbo Nature Reserve as part of his PhD into ecology of the species at this site. A/P David Lindenmayer provided samples from four locations in the Victorian Central Highlands, and Sid Larwill has provided a portion of a hair sample discovered at Mt Macedon in the mid-nineties.
I am using these samples, combined with genetic material from historical specimens kindly loaned by the Museum of Victoria, to analyse phylogenetic structure. In particular, I will investigate the degree of divergence between extant populations, represented by the highlands and Yellingbo samples, and extinct populations, represented by the museum specimens.
In addition to phylogenetic analyses, I plan to sample animals residing in nest boxes at Lake Mountain, and compare fine-scale genetic structure (kin groups and colony structure) of this non-isolated population to the population at Yellingbo.
This information will be used to provide important insights into the current distribution of the species and will be integral in forming management plans for a species which is steadily declining in range.
