GENETIC-VARIABILITY IN TULE ELK

I examined genetic variability at 38 loci in tule elk, Cervus elaphus nannodes, using starch-gel electrophoresis. There was no variability in 23 allozymes from blood of 76 individuals from two populations. Using liver and kidney from 24 individuals from one population, there was variation in two of 30 allozymes. The overall proportion of polymorphic loci was 0.053. Tule elk are genetically less variable than conspecifics, probably as a result of the extreme population bottleneck they experienced. Management should emphasize maximizing population size and establishing gene flow among the isolated tule elk populations.