Introgressive Hybridization in Populations of Paiute Cutthroat Trout (Salmo clarki seleniris)

Abstract

Two populations of Paiute cutthroat trout (Salmo clarki seleniris) were compared meristically and electrophoretically with Lahontan cutthroat (S. c. henshawi) and rainbow trout (S. gairdneri) to elucidate population structure and verify the occurrence of introgressive hybridization. In Silver King Creek, both meristic and electrophoretic evidence indicated two populations were present, one appearing to be pure Paiute cutthroat, the other Paiute cutthroat introgressed with rainbow trout. Lahontan cutthroat introgression was a possibility in Silver King Creek but could not be evaluated because of the strong meristic and electrophoretic similarity of Paiute and Lahontan cutthroat. The other Paiute population, Cottonwood Creek, meristically appeared to be pure Paiute cutthroat but electrophoretic data indicated it was introgressed with rainbow trout. The existence of the two Silver King Creek populations indicated introgression was incomplete in that stream; introgression appeared to be complete in Cottonwood Creek. The meristic similarity of Cottonwood Creek trout to pure Paiute cutthroat was probably a result of strong selection by management agencies for a Paiute cutthroat phenotype. Electrophoresis was more discriminating than meristic analysis in this study in detecting introgression. Electrophoresis also allowed more detailed analysis of population structure than meristics because of the difference in complexity of the genetic systems analyzed by the two techniques. However, the application of both techniques contributed greatly to our understanding of introgression in the Paiute cutthroat and demonstrated the complementarity of the two approaches.Key words: Salmo clarki, Salmo gairdneri, Paiute cutthroat, Lahontan cutthroat, meristics, electrophoresis, introgression, hybridization, gametic disequilibrium, principal components