Over the past 20 years, there has been a growing awareness of the impact of genetic factors on the success of reintroduction programs for fish and other species. One primary genetic criterion to be considered in the design and implementation of reintroduction programs is the maximization of genetic diversity within reintroduced populations. Reintroduction has become an important management tool for the imperiled lake sturgeon Acipenser fulvescens. However, little published work has evaluated current lake sturgeon reintroduction programs in terms of their ability to transfer genetic diversity from source populations to reintroduced populations. We evaluated the success of an ongoing lake sturgeon reintroduction program based upon its ability to adequately transmit the genetic diversity of the Lake Winnebago source population into reintroduced populations in the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. Additionally, a nonreintroduced single year-class from a hatchery population established from the Lake Winnebago stock was included in this study to determine how much of a source population's genetic diversity could be captured in a single stocking event. Reintroduced populations exhibited levels of genetic diversity similar to that of their source population, and estimates of genetic differentiation revealed very little divergence between source and reintroduced population pairs. Significant levels of genetic differentiation between the Lake Winnebago and nonreintroduced hatchery fish, as well as evidence of a bottleneck within the hatchery fish, indicated that the small number of parents used in a single-year stocking event may not adequately exploit a source's available genetic diversity. Therefore, a multiple-year stocking strategy may be most appropriate for lake sturgeon reintroduction programs.

The selection of an appropriate source population may be crucial to the long-term success of reintroduction programs. Appropriate source populations often are those that originate from the same genetic lineage as native populations. However, source populations also should exhibit high levels of genetic diversity to maximize their capacity to adapt to variable environmental conditions. Finally, it is preferable if source populations are genetically representative of historical lineages with little or no contamination from non-native or domesticated stocks. Here, we use nuclear (microsatellite) and cytoplasmic (mitochondrial control region) markers to assess the genetic suitability of a potential source population inhabiting the White River in Indiana: the last extant lake sturgeon population in the Ohio River drainage. The White River population exhibited slightly lower levels of genetic diversity than other lake sturgeon populations. However, the population's two private microsatellite alleles and three private haplotypes suggest a unique evolutionary trajectory. Population assignment tests revealed only two putative migrants in the White River, indicating the population has almost completely maintained its genetic integrity. Additionally, pairwise F ST estimates indicated significant levels of genetic divergence between the White River and seven additional lake sturgeon populations, suggesting its genetic distinctiveness. These data indicate that the White River population may be the most suitable source population for future lake sturgeon reintroductions throughout the Ohio River drainage. Furthermore, the White River population appears to be a reservoir of unique genetic information and reintroduction may be a necessary strategy to ensure the persistence of this important genetic lineage.

Sixty-eight primer sets for microsatellite loci were developed from microsatellite motif enriched genomic libraries of pooled DNA from the polyploid green and white sturgeon (Acipenser medirostris and A. transmontanus). Four individuals from each species were screened for polymorphism at these loci. Forty-eight loci amplified in both species, and some exhibited species-specific amplification for white or green sturgeon (8 and 12 loci, respectively). The number of alleles per locus ranged from one to 12. At least 68% of the green and 65% of the white sturgeon loci we developed are polysomic.

In order to complement ecological information with genetic data we isolated and characterized 14 polymorphic microsatellite markers from raccoons (Procyon lotor). Three multiplexed panels comprising the loci were developed and 29 individuals from a contiguous habitat patch in northern Indiana, USA were genotyped. The number of alleles per locus ranged from four to 18, and overall heterozygosities ranged from 0.31 to 1.00. One locus was identified as possibly being X‐linked, since males appeared to be hemizygous. Data generated using these markers will be used to further our understanding of small‐scale raccoon population dynamics in a highly fragmented landscape.