Greater and Gunnison sage-grouse populations are species considered for listing under the Endangered Species Act of 1973.
Loss and fragmentation of sagebrush habitats are among the primary causes of decline in greater and Gunnison sage-grouse. A fundamental need for species conservation is to identify and subsequently maintain a set of connected populations. Landscape genetics combines the fields of population genetics and landscape ecology to investigate how landscape and environmental features affect connectivity, gene flow, population structure, and local adaptation. The goal of this new field of study is to provide information about the interaction between landscape features and microevolutionary processes such as gene flow, genetic drift, and selection allowing for the understanding of processes that generate genetic structure across space.
Trust Species and Habitats geneticists, in collaboration with other USGS scientists, Federal, State, and local agencies, and academia, are using genetic data in conjunction with landscape data (for example, habitat, roads, energy development, and elevation) to identify landscape features that function as barriers to movement for both greater and Gunnison sage-grouse. These studies will help define biologically meaningful populations, provide information on levels of connectivity among populations, and define characteristics of barriers (including geographic distance, topographic features, and anthropogenic land uses) that affect dispersal and genetic exchange. Managers will be able to apply this understanding to focus conservation efforts in areas that will maximize benefits to sage-grouse populations.
The viability of the individual populations and long-term persistence of the species may be impacted by the ability of individual birds to move between populations. We are using genetic samples to infer connectivity across the species range and between leks within the Gunnison Basin to gain insight on which landscape or habitat features are contributing to the fragmentation of the species range. Our connectivity analysis within the basin will provide insight at a manageable scale and ultimately aims to inform current and future management possibilities by delineating corridors of movement and barriers to movement.

Molecular Ecology Lab (MEL)
Characterizing the environmental drivers of range-wide gene flow for greater sage-grouse
Development and application of genomic resources for the greater sage-grouse
Synthesis of sage-grouse genetic information to support conservation and land management actions
Genomic Scans for Local Adaptation in Greater Sage-Grouse
Integration of Genetic and Demographic Data to Assess the Relative Importance of Connectivity and Habitat in Sage-Grouse Populations
Using Genetic Analyses To Inform On-The-Ground Conservation for Multiple Sagebrush-Associated Wildlife Species
Landscape Influence on Gene Flow in Greater Sage-grouse
The potential influence of genome-wide adaptive divergence on conservation translocation outcome in an isolated greater sage-grouse population
Genetic mark–recapture analysis reveals large annual variation in pre-breeding sex ratio of greater sage-grouse
The ties that bind the sagebrush biome: Integrating genetic connectivity into range-wide conservation of greater sage-grouse
New strategies for characterizing genetic structure in wide-ranging, continuously distributed species: a Greater Sage-grouse case study
Scale-dependent influence of the sagebrush community on genetic connectivity of the sagebrush obligate Gunnison sage-grouse
Balancing model generality and specificity in management-focused habitat selection models for Gunnison sage-grouse
Genetic mark‐recapture analysis of winter faecal pellets allows estimation of population size in Sage Grouse Centrocercus urophasianus
Evaluation of genetic change from translocation among Gunnison Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus minimus) populations
Quantifying functional connectivity: The role of breeding habitat, abundance, and landscape features on range‐wide gene flow in sage‐grouse
The genetic network of greater sage-grouse: Range-wide identification of keystone hubs of connectivity
Differential influences of local subpopulations on regional diversity and differentiation for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus)
Contrasting evolutionary histories of MHC class I and class II loci in grouse—Effects of selection and gene conversion
Below are partners associated with this project.
Loss and fragmentation of sagebrush habitats are among the primary causes of decline in greater and Gunnison sage-grouse. A fundamental need for species conservation is to identify and subsequently maintain a set of connected populations. Landscape genetics combines the fields of population genetics and landscape ecology to investigate how landscape and environmental features affect connectivity, gene flow, population structure, and local adaptation. The goal of this new field of study is to provide information about the interaction between landscape features and microevolutionary processes such as gene flow, genetic drift, and selection allowing for the understanding of processes that generate genetic structure across space.
Trust Species and Habitats geneticists, in collaboration with other USGS scientists, Federal, State, and local agencies, and academia, are using genetic data in conjunction with landscape data (for example, habitat, roads, energy development, and elevation) to identify landscape features that function as barriers to movement for both greater and Gunnison sage-grouse. These studies will help define biologically meaningful populations, provide information on levels of connectivity among populations, and define characteristics of barriers (including geographic distance, topographic features, and anthropogenic land uses) that affect dispersal and genetic exchange. Managers will be able to apply this understanding to focus conservation efforts in areas that will maximize benefits to sage-grouse populations.
The viability of the individual populations and long-term persistence of the species may be impacted by the ability of individual birds to move between populations. We are using genetic samples to infer connectivity across the species range and between leks within the Gunnison Basin to gain insight on which landscape or habitat features are contributing to the fragmentation of the species range. Our connectivity analysis within the basin will provide insight at a manageable scale and ultimately aims to inform current and future management possibilities by delineating corridors of movement and barriers to movement.

Molecular Ecology Lab (MEL)
Characterizing the environmental drivers of range-wide gene flow for greater sage-grouse
Development and application of genomic resources for the greater sage-grouse
Synthesis of sage-grouse genetic information to support conservation and land management actions
Genomic Scans for Local Adaptation in Greater Sage-Grouse
Integration of Genetic and Demographic Data to Assess the Relative Importance of Connectivity and Habitat in Sage-Grouse Populations
Using Genetic Analyses To Inform On-The-Ground Conservation for Multiple Sagebrush-Associated Wildlife Species
Landscape Influence on Gene Flow in Greater Sage-grouse
The potential influence of genome-wide adaptive divergence on conservation translocation outcome in an isolated greater sage-grouse population
Genetic mark–recapture analysis reveals large annual variation in pre-breeding sex ratio of greater sage-grouse
The ties that bind the sagebrush biome: Integrating genetic connectivity into range-wide conservation of greater sage-grouse
New strategies for characterizing genetic structure in wide-ranging, continuously distributed species: a Greater Sage-grouse case study
Scale-dependent influence of the sagebrush community on genetic connectivity of the sagebrush obligate Gunnison sage-grouse
Balancing model generality and specificity in management-focused habitat selection models for Gunnison sage-grouse
Genetic mark‐recapture analysis of winter faecal pellets allows estimation of population size in Sage Grouse Centrocercus urophasianus
Evaluation of genetic change from translocation among Gunnison Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus minimus) populations
Quantifying functional connectivity: The role of breeding habitat, abundance, and landscape features on range‐wide gene flow in sage‐grouse
The genetic network of greater sage-grouse: Range-wide identification of keystone hubs of connectivity
Differential influences of local subpopulations on regional diversity and differentiation for greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus)
Contrasting evolutionary histories of MHC class I and class II loci in grouse—Effects of selection and gene conversion
Below are partners associated with this project.