Seagrasses such as Ruppia maritima and Halodule wrightii provide a nursery environment for fish and shrimp larvae. Recent efforts to restore Ruppia maritima by transplanting have been relatively unsuccessful. This failure may be attributed to low genetic diversity of the donor population. Populations with a greater degree of genetic variation have a higher probability of withstanding the shock of a rapid change in environmental conditions that results from being transplanted to a recipient site. Restriction digestion sites have adapters ligated to them which become the primer binding sites.
Restriction fragments provide a pattern unique to individuals or clones, identified as fingerprints.
With this information, we hope to determine the clonal structure of a population to see how this characterization might affect inbreeding depression. Results will identify the populations most suitable for transplanting which will facilitate repatriation of this important species.