The federally endangered annual Lasthenia conjugens (Asteraceae) is endemic to vernal pools in California?s Central Valley. It is a self-incompatible herb relying on animal mediated pollination for seed set. Vernal pools are ephemeral wetlands with both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystem traits. The vernal pool habitat is endangered due to habitat destruction. Several conservation strategies are underway to preserve the remaining habitat. At Travis Air Force Base outside of Fairfield California, a restoration project, with artificial pools, is in progress. Both natural and artificial pools are present at the same site providing a unique scenario for examining population genetic structure. One of the main goals of this research is to examine if levels of genetic variation present within the artifically created pools mimic those seen in the sampled natural pools. Using the method of Inter Simple Sequence Repeat (ISSR) analysis, hierarchical genetic structure is being examined within and among populations at this site. Preliminary results were obtained using one primer comparing 140 individuals from the natural pools and 100 individuals from the artificial pools. AMOVA analysis showed significant levels of variation (p < 0.01, at all levels), such that 9.64% of the variance was explained by type of pool (natural vs. artificial), 5.70% was explained by populations within type of pool, and 84.67% was explained by populations. Genetic analyses will be conducted over three years to see if and how genetic structure changes in populations over a short period of time. Implications for the conservation of this annual plant will be made from the results.

Key words: Lasthenia conjugens , conservation genetics, ISSR analysis