| Summary: | The structuring of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) into discrete, genetically differentiated populations both within and between river catchments is well documented. The utilisation of this knowledge has proved valuable in a variety of evolutionary, ecological, managerial and conservation contexts. In this thesis, the genetic structuring of Atlantic salmon populations in northwest Europe was assessed in two catchments of very different sizes, using a range of molecular and associated population genetic methods; findings from the catchment level research are set in context by a broader phylogeographic study of post-glacial colonisation of the region. A regional study into the glacial origins and post-glacial colonisation routes of Atlantic salmon in northwest Europe was explored by analysing a pre-existing microsatellite dataset and supplementing it with haplotype data from mtDNA PCR-RFLP analysis of the same samples (N=702). Evidence from allele permutation tests undertaken on the microsatellite data alongside mtDNA haplotype frequencies suggested that there was a cryptic northern refuge in northwest France, with colonisation of the British Isles and Ireland occurring from this and the long-known Iberian Peninsula refuge. Catchment level studies were undertaken on the river Dart and river Tweed, involving 1151 fish being genotyped with 14 microsatellite loci with a subset of 211 fish being genotyped by mtDNA PCR-RFLP. In both catchments, populations were found to be weakly differentiated genetically, and were most consistent with the meta-population theory of evolution. Similarly, individual spatial autocorrelation analysis indicated that each major tributary within the catchments could be considered as a distinct management or conservation unit. In the Tweed dataset, however, limitations in the sample coverage across the catchment reduced the robustness of some findings. Historical stocking of the river Dart with fish from Scotland and Iceland is well-documented. The long-term implications of these activities ...
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