View article

The effective population size (N _e ) is a key parameter in evolutionary and population genetics. Single-sample N _e estimation provides an alternative to traditional approaches requiring two or more samples. Single-sample methods assume that the study population has no genetic sub-structure, which is unlikely to be true in wild populations. Here we empirically investigated two single-sample estimators (onesamp and L d N e) in replicated and controlled genetically structured populations of Drosophila melanogaster. Using experimentally controlled population parameters, we calculated the Wright–Fisher expected N _e for the structured population ( ^Total N _e ) and demonstrated that the loss of heterozygosity did not significantly differ from …