A central question in conservation is how best to manage biodiversity, despite human domination of global processes (= Anthropocene). Common responses (i.e. translocations, genetic rescue) forestall potential extirpations, yet have an uncertain duration. A textbook example is the greater prairie chicken (GRPC: Tympanuchus cupido pinnatus), where translocations (1992–1998) seemingly rescued genetically depauperate Illinois populations. We re-evaluated this situation after two decades by genotyping 21 microsatellite loci from 1831 shed feathers across six leks in two counties over 4 years (2010–2013). Low migration rates (less than 1%) established each county as demographically independent, but with declining-population estimates (4 year average N = 79). Leks were genetically similar and significantly bottlenecked, with low effective population sizes (average Ne = 13.1; 4 year Ne/N = 0.166). Genetic structure was defined by 12 significantly different family groups, with relatedness r = 0.31 > half-sib r = 0.25. Average heterozygosity, indicating short-term survival, did not differ among contemporary, pre- and post-translocated populations, whereas allelic diversity did. Our results, the natural history of GRPC (i.e. few leks, male dominance hierarchies) and its controlled immigration suggest demographic expansion rather than genetic rescue. Legal protection under the endangered species act (ESA) may enhance recovery, but could exacerbate political–economic concerns on how best to manage ‘conservation-reliant’ species, for which GRPC is now an exemplar.

Urban biodiversity provides critical ecosystem services and is a key component to environmentally and socially sustainable cities. However, biodiversity varies greatly within and among cities, leading to human communities with changing and unequal experiences with nature. The "luxury effect," a hypothesis that predicts a positive | 5447 MAGLE Et AL.

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Multi-species approaches provide valuable insight for conservation planning, yet most studies focus on only one species while generalizing across taxa. Here, we employed 5-14 microsatellite DNA loci to evaluate population genetic patterns and future vulnerability for a freshwater turtle assemblage distributed across north-eastern Illinois. Focal species (Emydoidea blandingii, Clemmys guttata, Chrysemys picta and Chelydra serpentina) differ in conservation status as well as in ecological and life-history traits, which modulate gene flow across heterogeneous landscapes. We hypothesized (1) common and more ubiquitous species (C. picta and C. serpentina) would exhibit higher levels of genetic connectivity compared to species more restricted in distributions and with an elevated conservation status (E. blandingii and C. guttata) and (2) endangered species exhibit a greater loss of future genetic diversity. We found that genetic patterns varied considerably among co-distributed species. Endangered species had lower levels of genetic diversity and gene flow, more pronounced genetic structure and a higher risk of genetic drift compared to common species, thus supporting our hypotheses. The observed patterns are potentially attributable to life-history and ecological traits and will affect the long-term viability of the four species within a modified north-eastern Illinois landscape. Our study is an important first step for understanding how landscape features and species-specific traits interact to affect gene flow and population genetic structure within altered landscapes. It also underscores how multi-species approaches can be informative for conservation actions.Genetic patterns in a fragmented turtle community W. J. B. Anthonysamy et al.