Literary Review: Genetic Basis Of Migration

Abstract

Many species of animals undertake long-distance migrations to take advantage of seasonal resources that are not present within their home ranges. The goal of this paper is to examine research that is investigating genes and alleles that differ between resident and anadromous (migratory population) salmonids: salmon, trout, and charr. Research had indicated so far that there appears to be a positive correlation between the migratory patterns of parental trout and the migratory patterns of their offspring, suggesting underlying genetic factors involved in the development of either migrating or staying resident. Various regions of their genome have been identified as involved in the process of migration in rainbow trout. However, it is still unknown which specific polymorphisms within these genes are causing the variation in migratory behavior. Locating polymorphisms that vary between resident and migrant trout and then genotyping them in many individuals will help determine the genetic basis of migration and be useful in conservation studies as many populations of migratory trout are decreasing at alarming rates. Questions to be explored in this paper include: What is migration? What indicates if a salmon will migrate or not? What role does the environment play on gene expression? What specific genetic rearrangements and SNPs are playing a role in determining migratory behavior and how heritable are they?