Habitat loss does not always entail negative genetic consequences

Abstract

Although habitat loss has large, consistently negative effects on biodiversity, its genetic consequences are not yet fully understood. In this paper, we assess the genetic consequences of extreme habitat loss driven by mining in two endemic plants from Amazonian Savannas. Our analyses are the first to overcome major methodological limitations like the confounding effect of habitat fragmentation, historical processes underpinning genetic differentiation, time-lags between the onset of disturbances and genetic outcomes, and the need for large numbers of samples, genetic markers and replicated landscapes to ensure sufficient statistical power. We found that both species are remarkably resilient, as genetic diversity and gene flow patterns were unaffected by habitat loss. Our study unambiguously demonstrates that it is not possible to generalize about the genetic consequences of habitat loss, and imply that future conservation efforts need to consider species-specific genetic information.