Conservation units for anadromous Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus) in the Canadian Arctic informed by genetic structure, population connectivity and adaptive genomic variation

Abstract

Intraspecific genetic diversity is a crucial aspect of biodiversity conservation as it preserves evolutionary potential and enhances resilience to environmental change. Genomic-informed delineation of Conservation Units (CUs) offers ways of subdividing species into groups based on historical isolation and adaptive differentiation, to develop biologically relevant conservation and management policies. CUs have been defined in many species of harvested anadromous salmonids, but broad scale data remains lacking in the Canadian Arctic, where anadromous Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus) dominates catches in Indigenous-led subsistence and commercial fisheries. In this study, we use low-coverage whole-genome data from 30 Canadian populations of Arctic Char to define CUs based on population structure and connectivity, as well as adaptive genetic variation. We highlight two main genetic groups, each of which comprises three subgroups, or candidate CUs: the North (above the 67th parallel), including the North Baffin Island, Kitikmeot, and Inuvialuit Settlement Region CUs; and the South (below the 67th parallel), including the South Baffin Island, Ungava Bay, and Hudson Bay CUs. This delimitation is supported by areas of low effective migration between candidate CUs, as well as isolation-by-environment, which suggests adaptive differentiation. Finally, we discuss opportunities and caveats relating to linkage when identifying adaptive genetic variation from whole genome sequencing data through genome scans and Gene-Environment Associations.