New DNA research may help conserve threatened rattlesnake species

The DNA from hundreds of rattlesnakes around B.C. is under the microscope at the University of British Columbia Okanagan.

Danielle Schmidt, a biology masters student at the Kelownacampus,is studying more than800 samples of rattlesnake DNAtaken from snakes around the Okanagan, Kamloops, Lillooet and Ashcroft areas.

This is the first population study of western rattlesnakes in B.C., according to Schmidt.

Western rattlesnakes have been listed by the province as a species of special concern. The federal government has classified them asa "threatened" species.

Their survival is importantbecause rattlesnakesplay a crucial role in theecosystem, controllingrodent populations that canharmcrops, said Schmidt.

Schmidt, who collaborated with other students and researchers over the past year, saysunderstanding the differences between snakes in different areas may help to protect the threatened species.

Preliminary analysis has found that the snake populations in Kamloops are genetically distinct and different from the rest of the snakes in the same range of study, Schmidt told Daybreak Southhost Chris Walker.

Schmidt and her team also found that snakes in Vernon aregenetically distinct and different from all the other populations.

The UBC research team has detected three distinct genetic populations of rattlesnakes so far.

The researchers will pass this genetic information to those who work to conserve rattlesnake populations. In the future,researchers can then determine which populations of rattlesnakes need more attention and allocate resources accordingly.

"If you're seeing that some populations have lower genetic diversity than others, you know you want to find strategies to either help maintain that variation so it doesn't dwindle down, or encourage more gene flow between populations," said Schmidt.

A big strategy is to protect the habitats ofrattlesnakes. Learning about genetic diversity teaches researchers how to best conserve the habitat of a specific rattlesnake population, said Schmidt.

Roads that run through rattlesnake habitats might have a role to play in genetic separations in rattlesnakes as well. Some graduate students at Thompson Rivers University arelooking at how roads affect the mortality, survival, behaviour and ecology of snakes, said Schmidt.

Schmidt said there are still many questions about the genetic information that need to be answered.

"Since this is the first genetic study, we're hoping to get a baseline of what the [population] distribution looks like across the range and really get at what's driving this genetic variation."

Listen to the full interview here:

With files from Daybreak South