A COMPARISON OF ALLOZYMES AND MITOCHONDRIAL-DNA IN ATLANTIC SALMON FROM TASMANIA AND FROM THE ANCESTRAL POPULATION IN CANADA

About 30 years ago, Atlantic salmon ova were imported from River Phili p, Nova Scotia, to found a population in New South Wales, Australia. O va from the New South Wales stock were subsequently used to found the Tasmanian stock. Allozyme analysis of 7 variable nuclear loci of pan f rom Tasmania and from their ancestral Canadian population showed that the two samples were very similar to each other, although some minor d ifferences were apparent. One of 18 restriction enzymes (HinPI) used i n mitochondrial DNA analysis revealed polymorphism, with the Tasmanian sample having a small but significant increase in the frequency of th e rarer haplotype (0.194+/-0.046 versus 0.056+/-0.028). There was no e vidence of reduced nuclear or mitochondrial DNA variability in the Tas manian stock compared to its ancestral stock.