Original article The dendroclimatic potential of conifers ...
Conservation of Mediterranean conifers’ genetic resources · Conservation of Mediterranean...
Transcript of Conservation of Mediterranean conifers’ genetic resources · Conservation of Mediterranean...
Conservation of Mediterranean conifers’ genetic resources
Jarkko Koskela1 and Bruno Fady2
1 EUFORGEN Coordinator, Bioversity International2 Chair of the EUFORGEN Conifers Network, INRA
FAO Silva Mediterranea and IUFRO WG 20213 Joint Expert Meeting, Arezzo, Italy, 21 June 2007
Mediterranean conifers
• A compilation of isozyme data shows that genetic diversity is higher in Mediterranean conifers than in conifers worldwide
• Refugia of temperate conifers in the Mediterranean region
• Mediterranean conifers and Mediterranean populations of temperate conifers need to be well represented in the gene conservation networks
EUFORGEN
• European Forest Genetic Resources Programme (EUFORGEN)
• Collaborative programme among European countries to promote conservation and sustainable use of forest genetic resources
• Established in October 1994• Implementation mechanism of Pan-
European forest policy process (Ministerial Conferences on the Protection of Forests in Europe, MCPFE)
EUFORGEN
• 1st Ministerial Conference, Strasbourg, France (1990)– Resolution S2: Conservation of forest genetic
resources• 4th Ministerial Conference, Vienna, Austria
(2003)– Resolution V4: Conserving and enhancing
forest biological diversity in Europe– “promote the conservation of forest genetic
resources as an integral part of sustainable forest management and continue the pan-European collaboration in this area”
EUFORGEN
• Fully financed by the member countries (34)
• National Coordinators -> Steering Committee
• Bioversity International is hosting the EUFORGEN Secretariat and coordinating the Programme in technical collaboration with FAO
Member countries
EUFORGEN Objectives
• Promote practical implementation of gene conservation and appropriate use of genetic resources as an integral part of sustainable forest management
• Make available and disseminate reliable information on forest genetic resources in Europe
• Facilitate further development of methods to conserve genetic diversity of European forests
EUFORGEN Networks
• Forest Management Network • Conifers Network• Scattered Broadleaves Network• Stand-forming Broadleaves Network
– Carry out most of the technical work– Scientists, policy-makers and managers (108)
participate in the Network meetings and contribute to various activities between the meetings
– In-kind contributions
Conifers Network
• Established in 2000 to continue the work of the Picea abies Network (1995-1999)
• Survey on priorities for gene conservation of conifers in Europe– Priority species, including many Mediterranean
conifers– Main constraints to conservation and use of
conifer genetic resources– Priorities for future activities of the Conifers
Network
Conifers Network
• Abies cephalonica• Abies nebrodensis• Abies pinsapo• Cedrus brevifolia• Cedrus libani• Cupressus
sempervirens• Juniperus excelsa• Juniperus foetidissima• Juniperus macrocarpa• Juniperus polycarpos
• Pinus brutia• Pinus halepensis• Pinus heldreichii• Pinus nigra• Pinus peuce• Pinus pinaster• Pinus pinea• Tetraclinis articulata
Conifers Network
• Main constraints to conservation and use of conifer genetic resources– Linking gene conservation and silviculture– Lack of awareness on genetic resources
among decision-makers– Risks to the genetic resources due to abiotic
and biotic factors– Use of reproductive material of unknown
sources– Lack of knowledge on species reproductive
biology and genetic variation
FGR conservation and SFM
• EUFORGEN is collecting data on the indicator 4.6 of the pan-European C&I for sustainable forest management– Area managed for conservation and utilisation
of forest tree genetic resources (in situ and ex situ gene conservation)
– Area managed for seed production• Trends in implementation of sustainable
forest management in Europe (1990, 2000 and 2005)
In situ conservation
32,818.0 28,206.013,023.9Total
4,221.0 4,232.03,917.0Pinus pinea
2,905.02,922.02,923.0Pinus pinaster
11,447.99,403.5731.0Pinus nigra
3,160.01,600.03,160.0Pinus heldreichii/leucodermis
2,142.72,182.02,266.0Pinus halepensis
---Pinus canariensis
8,820.67,862.626.0Pinus brutia
---Cedrus libani
---Cedrus atlantica
100.0--Abies pinsapo
20.83.90.9Abies grandis
---Abies cephalonica
200520001990Species
Hectares
Ex situ conservation
163.9 152.5 102.1 Total
9.1 9.19.10Pinus pinea
58.4 58.45.6 Pinus pinaster
41.1 43.440.8 Pinus nigra
---Pinus heldreichii/leucodermis
17.0 17.0 22.6 Pinus halepensis
---Pinus canariensis
20.0 10.1 10.1 Pinus brutia
3.3 3.3 3.3 Cedrus libani
4.5 4.5 4.5 Cedrus atlantica
---Abies pinsapo
10.0 6.2 5.6 Abies grandis
0.5 0.5 0.5 Abies cephalonica
200520001990
Hectares
Species
Seed production area
Hectares
69,881.4 51,248.8 22,580.7 Total
5,841.5 3,955.5 1,402.4Pinus pinea
7,198.3 3,392.1 243.4 Pinus pinaster
35,707.2 27,947.0 9,826.3 Pinus nigra
245.6 --Pinus heldreichii/leucodermis
2,176.7 208.0 208.4 Pinus halepensis
108.8 --Pinus canariensis
12,714.1 12,091.7 8,038.6 Pinus brutia
3,592.0 3,643.4 2,861.3 Cedrus libani
712.6 2.7 0.04 Cedrus atlantica
--0.03 Abies pinsapo
15.9 6.3 0.3 Abies grandis
200520001990Species
Technical Guidelines
• Abies alba• Picea abies• Pinus cembra• Pinus halepensis/P.
brutia• Pinus nigra• Pinus pinaster• Pinus pinea• Pinus sylvestris• Pinus heldreichii (prep)• Pinus peuce (prep)
Distribution maps
Pinus pinea Pinus nigra
www.euforgen.org
Conifers Network
• 4th Network meeting, Pitlochry, UK, 18-20 Oct 2003– Exotic conifers
• 5th Network meeting, Larnaca, Cyprus, 7-9 April 2005– Mediterranean conifers
• 6th Network meeting, Reykjavik, Iceland, 7-9 Sep 2006– Climate change
Common action plans
• Strategies to strengthen dynamic gene conservation at pan-European level– Species distribution maps– Geo-referenced data on the
existing gene conservation units– Integrated maps (distribution range, the units,
climate, distribution of genetic diversity, etc)– Gaps in gene conservation efforts– Promote practical gene conservation at national
level
Common action plans
• What is a dynamic gene conservation unit?– Minimum size and number of units– Management of the units– Monitoring of genetic diversity– Links to protected areas– Climate change
• EUFORGEN Networks have developed minimum requirements for gene conservation units of forest trees and networks of the units at pan-European level
Common action plans
• How the minimum requirements for conifers address climate change– Creation of artificial gene conservation units
further north than the current natural range to accelerate adaptation processes
– Relocation of southernmost and/or marginal populations demonstrating recent adaptation problems
– Creation of artificial gene conservation units at the southern margins to allow species hybridization to generate new adaptive combinations
Common action plans
• Working groups of the Conifers Network– Stand-forming/widespread species (Picea
abies, Pinus halepensis/brutia,)– Scattered/widespread (Taxus baccata)– Rare/threatened (P. nigra ecotypes,
Mediterranean Abies spp.)– Exotic conifers (Picea sitchensis, Pseudotsuga
menziesii)
Information management
• Establishment of a European Information System on Forest Genetic Resources (EUFGIS)
• One of the actions funded through the Council Regulation on genetic resources in agriculture (EC 870/2004)
• Project period– 1 April 2007-30 Sep 2010 (42 months)
EUFGIS
• Project partners– Bioversity International, Italy– Federal Research and Training Centre for
Forests, Natural Hazards and Landscape (BFW), Austria
– State Forest Tree Improvement Station (SNS), Denmark
– Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), France
– National Forest Centre (NLC), Slovakia– Slovenian Forestry Institute (SFI), Slovenia– Forest Research, United Kingdom
EUFGIS objectives
1. To create a Web-based, permanent information system
2. To establish a network of FGR inventories 3. To develop minimum requirements for the
dynamic gene conservation units and common information standards
4. To make available harmonized data on the dynamic gene conservation units of 20 tree species
5. To provide training on FGR documentation
EUFGIS infrastructure
National InventoryNational Inventory
EUFGIS EUFGIS central databasecentral database
Classic file uploadClassic file upload
Distributed access Distributed access through Web servicesthrough Web services
Intranet
GIS
Search
Download
Web site
Other databasesOther databases
European search catalogue on crops
http://eurisco.ecpgr.org/
Climate change and FGR
• Workshop on ‘Climate change and forest genetic diversity: Implications for sustainable forest management in Europe’, Paris, France, 15-16 March 2006 (organized by Bioversity and IUFRO)
• Part of the MCPFE Work Programme to implement Vienna Resolution 5 (Climate change and sustainable forest management in Europe)
• 78 participants from 25 countries
Climate change and FGR
• 8 invited presentations– Adaptation of forest trees to climate change– How to adapt forest management?– Field trials and the future use of forest
reproductive material– Economic considerations and FGR– National adaptation strategies to climate
change– Conservation of forest genetic resources under
climate change
Climate change and FGR
• 3 working groups– Silvicultural practices and forest genetic
diversity: what is needed to ensure adaptability of forests?
– Forest reproductive materials: how to use them under changing environmental conditions?
– Regional and national strategies: how international collaboration on forest genetic resources can facilitate their development and implementation?
Climate change and FGR
• General conclusions– Climate change will bring along both
opportunities and threats to forests– Genetic diversity maintains resilience of forest
ecosystems– Use of genetic diversity provides flexibility for
forest management and is a recommendable risk-reducing strategy for forest owners
– Strategies and guidelines are needed to promote appropriate use of forest reproductive material -> acceleration of adaptation process
Climate change and FGR
• Workshop recommendations 1. Policy makers in Europe should recognize the
importance of forest genetic diversity in mitigating the impacts of climate change on the forest sector by expressing a commitment at pan-European level to incorporate the management of this diversity into national forest programmes and other relevant policies, programmes and strategies.
Climate change and FGR
• Workshop recommendations 2. Policy makers in Europe should promote
forest management practices that maintain evolutionary processes of forest trees and support natural regeneration of forests, especially in areas where long-term natural regeneration is self-sustainable despite climate change.
Climate change and FGR
• Workshop recommendations 3. Policy makers in Europe should take into
account the potential for accelerating adaptation of forest trees to climate change through tree breeding and transfer of potentially suitable forest reproductive material by endorsing the development of pan-European guidelines for the transfer of forest reproductive material in Europe on the basis of scientific knowledge.
Climate change and FGR
• Workshop recommendations 4. European forest research community should
carry out more interdisciplinary studies (e.g. tree physiology, forest genetics, pests and diseases, forest management and economics, and modelling) on the impacts of climate change on forests with the support of the policy makers.