Every cog and wheel: Identifying biocomplexity at the genomic and phenotypic level in a population complex of Chinook salmon

Abstract

AbstractGenomic diversity is the fundamental building block of biodiversity and the necessary ingredient for adaptation. Our rapidly increasing ability to quantify functional, compositional, and structural genomic diversity of populations forces the question of how to balance conservation goals – should the focus be on important functional diversity and key life history traits or on maximizing genomic diversity as a whole? Specifically, the intra-specific diversity (biocomplexity) comprised of phenotypic and genetic variation can determine the ability of a population to respond to changing environmental conditions. Here, we explore the biocomplexity of California’s Central Valley Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) population complex at the genomic level. Notably, despite apparent gene flow among individuals with the same migration (life history) phenotypes inhabiting different tributaries, each group is characterized by a surprising component of unique genomic diversity. Our results emphasize the importance of formulating conservation goals focused on maintaining biocomplexity at both the phenotypic and genotypic level. Doing so will maintain the species’ adaptive potential and increase the probability of persistence of the population complex despite changing environmental pressures.