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The Preble's meadow jumping mouse: subjective subspecies, advocacy and management

The Preble's meadow jumping mouse: subjective subspecies, advocacy and management I read with concern the letters to the editor regarding the Preble's meadow jumping mouse Zapus hudsonius preblei in which Martin (2006) criticized Ramey (2005) for questioning the subspecies designation and the editor for a failed peer review, and Crandall (2006) defended his editorship. However, the debate over the subspecies status of the Preble's meadow jumping mouse does not properly acknowledge the subjectivity of the subspecies category. Designation of subspecies status is inherently subjective and this should be openly admitted by both sides of the debate. Accusations of advocacy in this issue are spurious because applied fields such as wildlife conservation or agriculture have inherent advocacy for management objectives. As discussed below, I suggest management units of intraspecific groups should be based on geography, not subjective judgements of subspecies status or genetic difféntiation. The subspecies status of this mouse has been discussed extensively ( Ramey , 2005, 2006; Crandall, 2006; Martin, 2006; Vignieri , 2006 ) because it has been listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Briefly, the Preble's mouse was designated a subspecies with limited descriptive morphological data. There are no diagnostic characters that unequivocally distinguish it from con‐specifics. It does not have monophyletic http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Animal Conservation Wiley

The Preble's meadow jumping mouse: subjective subspecies, advocacy and management

Cronin, M. A.
Animal Conservation , Volume 10 (2) – May 1, 2007
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References (35)

Publisher
Wiley
Copyright
Copyright © 2007 Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company
ISSN
1367-9430
eISSN
1469-1795
DOI
10.1111/j.1469-1795.2007.00103.x
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

I read with concern the letters to the editor regarding the Preble's meadow jumping mouse Zapus hudsonius preblei in which Martin (2006) criticized Ramey (2005) for questioning the subspecies designation and the editor for a failed peer review, and Crandall (2006) defended his editorship. However, the debate over the subspecies status of the Preble's meadow jumping mouse does not properly acknowledge the subjectivity of the subspecies category. Designation of subspecies status is inherently subjective and this should be openly admitted by both sides of the debate. Accusations of advocacy in this issue are spurious because applied fields such as wildlife conservation or agriculture have inherent advocacy for management objectives. As discussed below, I suggest management units of intraspecific groups should be based on geography, not subjective judgements of subspecies status or genetic difféntiation. The subspecies status of this mouse has been discussed extensively ( Ramey , 2005, 2006; Crandall, 2006; Martin, 2006; Vignieri , 2006 ) because it has been listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Briefly, the Preble's mouse was designated a subspecies with limited descriptive morphological data. There are no diagnostic characters that unequivocally distinguish it from con‐specifics. It does not have monophyletic

Journal

Animal Conservation – Wiley

Published: May 1, 2007

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