Genomic Variability and MHC Class IIB(1) Characterizationin a Reintroduced Population of Eastern Wild Turkeys

Abstract

This thesis is composed of two primary chapters, each examining a biological question about a population of eastern wild turkeys in southeastern Oklahoma. Although questions addressed in these chapters are scientifically diverse, they share one important commonality in that they were approached using molecular tools now available within the growing field of conservation genetics. Following an introductory chapter, Chapter Two discusses levels of inbreeding and genetic subdivision within the study population and is written in manuscript format for the journal to which it has been accepted for publication, The Southwestern Naturalist. Chapter Three also is written in manuscript format, with all reference materials separate from those for chapter two. Chapter three will be submitted as a short communication to the journal Animal Genetics, and characterizes the Class II? antigen binding site of the Major Histocompatibility Complex in wild turkeys.