Structure and genetic diversity of small populations of brown trout Salmo trutta in Kandalaksha Bay, the White Sea

The phenetic variability (types of life strategy, age and sex structure of population, biological peculiarities), the anthropogenic pressure, and the genetic diversity were studied by five microsatellite loci for several minor populations of brown trout Salmo trutta inhabiting the waterbodies of Velikaya Salma Strait watershed area (Kandalaksha Bay, the White Sea). The level of genetic and phenetic diversity in small populations was comparable to those representing large water systems. Significant spatial dissimilarity of the populations located in less than 15-km distance was found. Low allelic and genetic diversity was observed for the studied populations. Variability of some studied loci through the time period was observed for the fish sampled from different populations. We assume that minor populations of brown trout may be treated as the standards of native populations for the monitoring activities on the brown trout populations and its environment both in short-term and long-term perspective. © 2014 Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.