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David S. Woodruff1 1Department of Biology, Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution Section, University of California, San Diego Abstract The geographic ranges of primate species are increasingly fragmented and the surviving populations are small and vulnerable to genetic erosion due to inbreeding and genetic drift. This presents two problems that involve both fundamental and applied science. First, there is the question of whether spatial arrays of increasingly isolated populations are taxonomically comparable or representative of multiple taxa. At a fundamental level, primatologists must decide how to define species and whether to use the subspecies taxon. At an applied level, conservation biologists are learning how to use regulatory and biological arguments to prioritize populations for management. Second, there are the questions of what should and can be done to counter the effects of genetic erosion and to ensure the long-term viability of managed populations. Although genetic erosion now be monitored noninvasively in free-ranging populations it's role in population extirpation, and the risks associated with genetic restoration, are still unclear. Recent molecular genetic studies of phylogeny, phylogeography, population structure, gene flow and pedigree relationships in wild and captive chimpanzees and gibbons will be used to illustrate these issues. |