Estimating isolation and genetic differentiation in two Belgian populations of moorhens Gallinula chloropus by using minisatellite and microsatelliteDNA markers

Isolation of a population can result in decreased genetic variability as a consequence of inbreeding, random genetic drift and reduced gene flow This effect is reinforced when it concerns a small population. We used two molec ular techniques, multilocus minisatellite DNA fingerprinting and microsatel lite analysis, to compare population genetic parameters between a small, po ssibly isolated natural population of moorhens and a large, presumably non- isolated population at a distance of approximately 30 km. Although sample s izes were still relatively low both minisatellite and microsatellite analys is indicated that the small population is not genetically impoverished, des pite being located at the centre of a large city. Nevertheless, we found si gnificant between-populational genetic differentiation, which suggests that there is little gene now between the two populations studied.