BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//ZContent.net//ZapCalLib 1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Genomic Diversity and Relatedness in the Founding Black-footed Ferr et Population LOCATION:Yates 206 TZID:America/Denver DTSTART:20260611T110000 UID:2026-07-11-15-02-09@natsci.colostate.edu DTSTAMP:20260711T150209 Description:Join Us for Robyn Bortner’s Master’s Defense Seminar!\n\nTh e Department of Biology at Colorado State University is excited to invite you to a special Master’s defense seminar presented by graduate student Robyn Bortner.\n\nThe black-footed ferret is one of North America’s most endangered mammals. In her defense\, Robyn will explore the genomic diver sity and relatedness of the founding population of this iconic species. He r research sheds light on the genetic challenges faced by conservation eff orts and provides insights into preserving biodiversity.\n\nEvent Details\ nSpeaker: Robyn Bortner\nTitle: Genomic Diversity and Relatedness in the Founding Black-footed Ferret Population\nDate: Thursday\, June 11\nTime: 1 1:00 AM\nLocation: Yates 206\n\nCan\\'t make it in person? Join us on Team s!\ncol.st/v3770\n\nAdvised by Dr. Michael Antolin\, Emeritus Professor &a mp\; former Department Chair\, CSU Department of Biology\n\nWhether you\\' re passionate about wildlife conservation\, genetics\, or ecology\, this s eminar is a must-attend event for anyone interested in the natural science s. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn more about the intersection of g enomics and conservation biology. We hope to see you there!\nVisit our web site for more information on our seminars and follow us on social media f or more announcements from Biology.\n\n \nInstagram: @csubio\n \nTwitter /X: @csubiology\n \nFacebook: Department of Biology at Colorado State Uni versity\n\nAbstract\nBlack-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes) are small obl igate carnivores native to North American prairie ecosystems. They have th e unfortunate but notable distinction of being assumed extinct twice in th eir history. Dependent on healthy prairie dog (Cynomys spp.) colonies for both food and shelter\, black-footed ferrets most likely declined in respo nse to prairie habitat loss and fragmentation\, prairie dog eradication pr ograms\, and non-native disease\, most notably sylvatic plague (Yersinia p estis). After their rediscovery at a single site in Wyoming in 1981\, a su ccessful captive-breeding and reintroduction effort was formed with the la st 18 living individuals. Of these\, only 7 are considered to be genetic f ounders of the extant population. Coupled with the population’s isolated nature on the far western edge of the species range\, the founding black- footed ferrets had likely experienced a severe genetic bottleneck. Genetic management of the captive breeding population has been largely achieved t hrough pedigree analysis. Although studied prior to capture\, the relatedn ess of the founders is based on assumptions as they were all wild-caught\, and paternity in particular can be uncertain. The founders are also consi dered to be unrelated individuals\, but as they were all captured from the same dwindling source population\, their relationships to each other are likely more complicated than studbook assumptions suggest. Fortunately\, s uitably preserved samples existed for 19 individuals of the source populat ion\, including the 7 assumed founders. For my research\, I used next gene ration sequencing data and bioinformatics focused on variant discovery to characterize the amount of genomic variation in the founders\, estimate le vels of relatedness among the sampled individuals\, infer relationships\, and compare to the current pedigree. Results confirmed some relationships but contradicted others. Analysis also suggests that the founding populati on had a (not unexpected) higher level of background relatedness than is c urrently recorded. This work will inform further genetic investigation and conservation of the species.\n\n11:00 am END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR