iayork t1_iu52lpr wrote
Reply to comment by Cronon33 in Is it possible that only 4 moose imported to Newfoundland in 1904 could produce a viable modern population of 110,000 today? by SlipCritical9595
Mostly that’s true. But given the right background, and a significant amount of luck, very small founder populations can expand enormously. This is very common in invasive species. The 200 million starlings in North America today arose from a few dozen in the late 1800s. Bull trout in Montana arose from two founders. A million Barbary Ground Squirrels arose from a single female.
Again, this is possible but not inevitable. Most such introductions will collapse due to inbreeding. But occasionally explosions can happen.
Cronon33 t1_iu54o2o wrote
Right of course, there is no guarantee either way, at least with breeding individuals
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