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Abeli T, Dalrymple S, Godefroid S, Mondoni A, Müller JV, Rossi G, Orsenigo S. Ex situ collections and their potential for the restoration of extinct plants. CONSERVATION BIOLOGY : THE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 2020; 34:303-313. [PMID: 31329316 DOI: 10.1111/cobi.13391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2018] [Revised: 07/10/2019] [Accepted: 07/12/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The alarming current and predicted species extinction rates have galvanized conservationists in their efforts to avoid future biodiversity losses, but for species extinct in the wild, few options exist. We posed the questions, can these species be restored, and, if so, what role can ex situ plant collections (i.e., botanic gardens, germplasm banks, herbaria) play in the recovery of plant genetic diversity? We reviewed the relevant literature to assess the feasibility of recovering lost plant genetic diversity with using ex situ material and the probability of survival of subsequent translocations. Thirteen attempts to recover species extinct in the wild were found, most of which used material preserved in botanic gardens (12) and seed banks (2). One case of a locally extirpated population was recovered from herbarium material. Eight (60%) of these cases were successful or partially successful translocations of the focal species or population; the other 5 failed or it was too early to determine the outcome. Limiting factors of the use of ex situ source material for the restoration of plant genetic diversity in the wild include the scarcity of source material, low viability and reduced longevity of the material, low genetic variation, lack of evolution (especially for material stored in germplasm banks and herbaria), and socioeconomic factors. However, modern collecting practices present opportunities for plant conservation, such as improved collecting protocols and improved cultivation and storage conditions. Our findings suggest that all types of ex situ collections may contribute effectively to plant species conservation if their use is informed by a thorough understanding of the aforementioned problems. We conclude that the recovery of plant species currently classified as extinct in the wild is not 100% successful, and the possibility of successful reintroduction should not be used to justify insufficient in situ conservation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Abeli
- Department of Science, University of Roma Tre, Viale Guglielmo Marconi 446, Roma, 00146, Italy
| | - Sarah Dalrymple
- School of Natural Sciences and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, James Parsons Building, Byrom Street, Liverpool, L3 3AF, U.K
| | - Sandrine Godefroid
- Research Department, Botanic Garden Meise, Nieuwelaan 38, Meise, 1860, Belgium
- Service général de l'Enseignement supérieur et de la Recherche scientifique, Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, rue A. Lavallée 1, Brussels, 1080, Belgium
- Laboratory of Plant Ecology and Biogeochemistry, Université libre de Bruxelles, CP 244, Boulevard du Triomphe, Brussels, 1050, Belgium
| | - Andrea Mondoni
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Pavia, Via S. Epifanio 14, 27100, Pavia, Italy
| | - Jonas V Müller
- Millennium Seed Bank, Conservation Science, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Wakehurst Place, Ardingly, RH17 6TN, West Sussex, U.K
| | - Graziano Rossi
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Pavia, Via S. Epifanio 14, 27100, Pavia, Italy
| | - Simone Orsenigo
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Pavia, Via S. Epifanio 14, 27100, Pavia, Italy
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Chen G, Sun W. The role of botanical gardens in scientific research, conservation, and citizen science. PLANT DIVERSITY 2018; 40:181-188. [PMID: 30740563 PMCID: PMC6137266 DOI: 10.1016/j.pld.2018.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2018] [Revised: 07/18/2018] [Accepted: 07/19/2018] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Plant diversity is currently being lost at an unprecedented rate, resulting in an associated decrease in ecosystem services. About a third of the world's vascular plant species face the threat of extinction due to a variety of devastating activities, including, over-harvesting and over exploitation, destructive agricultural and forestry practices, urbanization, environmental pollution, land-use changes, exotic invasive species, global climate change, and more. We therefore need to increase our efforts to develop integrative conservation approaches for plant species conservation. Botanical gardens devote their resources to the study and conservation of plants, as well as making the world's plant species diversity known to the public. These gardens also play a central role in meeting human needs and providing well-being. In this minireview, a framework for the integrated missions of botanical gardens, including scientific research, in/ex situ conservation, plant resource utilization, and citizen science are cataloged. By reviewing the history of the development of Kunming Botanical Garden, we illustrate successful species conservation approaches (among others, projects involving Camellia, Rhododendron, Magnolia, Begonia, Allium, Nepenthes, medicinal plants, ornamental plants, and Plant Species with Extreme Small Populations), as well as citizen science, and scientific research at Kunming Botanical Garden over the past 80 years. We emphasize that Kunming Botanical Garden focuses largely on the ex situ conservation of plants from Southwest China, especially those endangered, endemic, and economically important plant species native to the Yunnan Plateau and the southern Hengduan Mountains. We also discuss the future challenges and responsibilities of botanical gardens in a changing world, including: the negative effects of outbreeding and/or inbreeding depression; promoting awareness, study, and conservation of plant species diversity; accelerating global access to information about plant diversity; increasing capacity building and training activities. We hope this minireview can promote understanding of the role of botanical gardens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gao Chen
- Kunming Botanical Garden, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650204, Yunnan, China
- Yunnan Key Laboratory for Integrative Conservation of Plant Species with Extremely Small Populations, Kunming, 650204, China
- Key Laboratory for Plant Diversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650204, Yunnan, China
| | - Weibang Sun
- Kunming Botanical Garden, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650204, Yunnan, China
- Yunnan Key Laboratory for Integrative Conservation of Plant Species with Extremely Small Populations, Kunming, 650204, China
- Key Laboratory for Plant Diversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650204, Yunnan, China
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Geng Q, Yao Z, Yang J, He J, Wang D, Wang Z, Liu H. Effect of Yangtze River on population genetic structure of the relict plant Parrotia subaequalis in eastern China. Ecol Evol 2015; 5:4617-27. [PMID: 26668727 PMCID: PMC4670060 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2015] [Revised: 08/23/2015] [Accepted: 08/25/2015] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Parrotia subaequalis (Hamamelidaceae) is a Tertiary relic species endemic in eastern China. We used inter‐simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers to access genetic diversity and population genetic structure in natural five populations of P. subaequalis. The levels of genetic diversity were higher at species level (H = 0.2031) but lower at population level (H = 0.1096). The higher genetic diversity at species levels might be attributed to the accumulation of distinctive genotypes which adapted to the different habitats after Quaternary glaciations. Meanwhile, founder effects on the early stage, and subsequent bottleneck of population regeneration due to its biological characteristics, environmental features, and human activities, seemed to explain the low population levels of genetic diversity. The hierarchical AMOVA revealed high levels (42.60%) of among‐population genetic differentiation, which was in congruence with the high levels of Nei's genetic differentiation index (GST = 0.4629) and limited gene flow (Nm = 0.5801) among the studied populations. Mantel test showed a significant isolation‐by‐distance, indicating that geographic isolation has a significant effect on genetic structure in this species. Unweighted pair‐group method with arithmetic average clustering, PCoA, and Bayesian analyses uniformly recovered groups that matched the geographical distribution of this species. In particular, our results suggest that Yangtze River has served as a natural barrier to gene flow between populations occurred on both riversides. Concerning the management of P. subaequalis, the high genetic differentiation among populations indicates that preserving all five natural populations in situ and collecting enough individuals from these populations for ex situ conservation are necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qifang Geng
- College of Life Sciences Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China ; State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China
| | - Zhigang Yao
- College of Life Sciences Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China ; Wetland Conservation Station of Jiangsu Province 22 Dinghuaimen Street Nanjing 210036 China
| | - Jie Yang
- College of Life Sciences Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China ; State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China
| | - Jia He
- College of Life Sciences Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China ; State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China
| | - Danbi Wang
- College of Life Sciences Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China ; State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China
| | - Zhongsheng Wang
- College of Life Sciences Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China ; State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Nanjing University 22 Hankou Road Nanjing 210093 China
| | - Hong Liu
- Department of Earth and Environment International Center for Tropical Botany Florida International University Miami FL 33199 USA ; College of Forestry Guangxi University Nanning 530004 China
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Brütting C, Hensen I, Wesche K. Ex situ cultivation affects genetic structure and diversity in arable plants. PLANT BIOLOGY (STUTTGART, GERMANY) 2013; 15:505-513. [PMID: 22882447 DOI: 10.1111/j.1438-8677.2012.00655.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Worldwide, botanical gardens cultivate around 80,000 taxa, corresponding to approximately one-quarter of all vascular plants. Most cultivated taxa are, however, held in a small number of collections, and mostly only in small populations. Lack of genetic exchange and stochastic processes in small populations make them susceptible to detrimental genetic effects, which should be most severe in annual species, as sowing cycles are often short. In order to assess whether ex situ cultivation affects genetic diversity of annuals, five annual arable species with similar breeding systems were assessed with 42 in situ populations being compared to 20 ex situ populations using a random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis approach. Population sizes tended to be lower under ex situ cultivation and levels of genetic diversity also tended to be lower in four of the five species, with differences being significant in only two. Ex situ populations showed incomplete representation of alleles found in the wild. The duration of cultivation did not indicate any effect on genetic diversity. This implies that cultivation strategies resulted in different genetic structures in the garden populations. Although not unequivocally pronounced, differences nonetheless imply that conservation strategies in the involved gardens may need improvement. One option is cold storage of seeds, a practice that is not currently followed in the studied ex situ collections. This may reflect that the respective gardens focus on displaying living plant populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Brütting
- Institute of Biology - Geobotany and Botanical Garden, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany.
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Faucon MP, Tshilong BM, Rossum F, Meerts P, Decocq G, Mahy G. Ecology and Hybridization Potential of Two Sympatric Metallophytes, the Narrow Endemic Crepidorhopalon perennis (Linderniaceae) and its More Widespread Congener C. tenuis. Biotropica 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2011.00845.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Benedict M. Tshilong
- Université de Lubumbashi; Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques; Lubumbashi; Democratic Republic of Congo
| | - Fabienne Rossum
- Department of Vascular Plants; National Botanic Garden of Belgium; Domein van Bouchout; B-1860; Meise; Belgium
| | - Pierre Meerts
- Laboratoire d'Ecologie végétale et Biogéochimie; Université Libre de Bruxelles; Boulevard du Triomphe; B-1050; Bruxelles; Belgium
| | - Guillaume Decocq
- Dynamique des Systèmes Anthropisés; Université de Picardie Jules Vernes; Faculté de Pharmacie; rue des Louvels 1; F-80037; Amiens Cedex 1; France
| | - Grégory Mahy
- Laboratory of Ecology; Université de Liège; Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech; Passage des Déportés 2; B-5030; Gembloux; Belgium
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Zhang J, Ye Q, Yao X, Huang H. Microsatellite diversity and mating system of Sinojackia xylocarpa (Styracaceae), a species extinct in the wild. BIOCHEM SYST ECOL 2010. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bse.2009.12.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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