The Importance of Effective Population Size in Conservation and Biodiversity Monitoring.
Name
Evolutionary_Applications_-_2026_-_Mergeay_-_The_Importance_of_Effective_Population_Size_in_Conservation_and_Biodiversity.pdf
Description
visibility:open
Size
289.2 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (CRC64NVME)
vIBQ/URvtEk=
Resource type
Journal article
Date published
January 17, 2026
Abstract
Effective population size (Ne) is a key concept in biology and conservation. Stripped to its bare essentials, it reflects how much genetic drift a population experiences, expressed as a number of individuals of an ideal theoretical population. Superficially, Ne seems like a fairly simple concept, but the more layers of the onion you peel, the more you feel like crying. Really understanding Ne in all its facets is daunting, as there are various temporal, spatial, biological, and mathematical ways in which Ne can be defined and approached, many of which are erroneously interchanged and often not distinguished. If that is not enough, understanding the intricacies and the assumptions of the many ways in which Ne can be calculated is required to make sense of the concept. This is why a special issue on this topic, especially in relation to biodiversity monitoring, is timely. We assembled 19 original papers, perspectives, and reviews on effective population size estimation in relation to conservation to help practitioners in conservation research and practical management see the forest for the trees with regards to Ne.
Project(s)
Priority 1: Ecosystem Stewardship
Funder
| Funder name | Awards |
Biodiversa+, European Union | Project GINAMO |
European Cooperation in Science and Technology, Belgium | 18134 G-BiKE - CA23121 GENOA |
Journal title
Evolutionary Applications
Volume
19
Issue
1
Article number
e70196
Publisher
John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Place of publication
UK
ISSN
1752-4571
eISSN
1752-4571
Date accepted
December 18, 2025
Official URL
Rights statement
In Copyright
Additional information
IF = 3.2 (2024)