Relict ecosystems of thermophilous and laurel forest as biodiversity hotspots in Fuerteventura, Canary Islands

Osorio, Victoria Eugenia Martín; Torre, Wolfredo Wildpret de la; Scholz, Stephan

doi:10.1080/11263504.2011.602733

Cited by 10 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…Today a small part of this forest is still preserved in the highlands of the Jandia Peninsula, in southern Fuerteventura Island (Martín Osorio et al, 2011). This woodland was cut down in the late 19th and early 20th century, mostly to produce coal for steamboats.…”

Section: Background On Fuerteventura Islandmentioning

confidence: 99%

Groundwater flow in a relatively old oceanic volcanic island: The Betancuria area, Fuerteventura Island, Canary Islands, Spain

Herrera¹,

Custódio²

2014

Science of The Total Environment

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Section: Background On Fuerteventura Islandmentioning

confidence: 99%

Groundwater flow in a relatively old oceanic volcanic island: The Betancuria area, Fuerteventura Island, Canary Islands, Spain

Herrera¹,

Custódio²

2014

Science of The Total Environment

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“…However, the analysis of crown ages suffers from the same problem of extinction and under-sampling, thus biasing the results to more recent times. The effect of island extinction in crown age estimates may be particularly pronounced in the thermophilous woodland because of multiple causes: (1) erosion and subsidence of flat, oldest islands (Fuerteventura, Lanzarote), which may previously have harboured large areas with this vegetation type (Fernández-Palacios et al, 2008;Martín Osorio et al, 2011); (2) geological dynamics (eruptions, earthquakes, mega-landslides) (Carracedo et al, 2001;García-Olivares et al, 2017); and most importantly (3) human land use and destruction of original vegetation (only 11 % currently preserved) between 200 and 600 m.a.s.l. (Fernández-Palacios et al, 2008;Castilla-Beltrán et al, 2021).…”

Section: Impact Of Extinction On the Inferred Temporal Origin Of The ...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Time-calibrated phylogenies reveal mediterranean and pre-mediterranean origin of the thermophilous vegetation of the Canary Islands

et al. 2023

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Background and Aims The Canary Islands have strong floristic affinities with the Mediterranean Basin. One of the most characteristic and diverse vegetation belt of the archipelago is the thermophilous woodland (between 200 and 900 m.a.s.l.). This thermophilous plant community consists of many non-endemic species shared with the Mediterranean Floristic Region together with Canarian endemic species. Consequently, phytogeographic studies have historically proposed the hypothesis of an origin of the Canarian thermophilous species following the establishment of the summer-dry mediterranean climate in the Mediterranean Basin around 2.8 million years ago. Methods Time-calibrated phylogenies for 39 plant groups including Canarian thermophilous species were primarily analysed to infer colonization times. In particular, we used 26 previously-published phylogenies together with 13 time-calibrated phylogenies (including newly generated plastid and nuclear DNA sequence data) to assess whether the time interval between stem and crown ages of Canarian thermophilous lineages postdates 2.8 Ma. For lineages postdating this time threshold, we additionally conducted ancestral area reconstructions to infer the potential source area for colonization. Key Results A total of 43 Canarian thermophilous lineages were identified from 39 plant groups. Both mediterranean (16) and pre-mediterranean (9) plant lineages were found. However, we failed to determine the temporal origin for 18 lineages because a stem-crown time interval overlaps with the 2.8 Ma threshold. The spatial origin of thermophilous lineages was also heterogeneous, including ancestral areas from the Mediterranean Basin (nine) and other regions (six). Conclusions Our findings reveal an unexpectedly heterogeneous origin of the Canarian thermophilous species in terms of colonization times and mainland source areas. A substantial proportion of the lineages arrived in the Canaries before the summer-dry climate was established on the Mediterranean Basin. The complex temporal and geographical origin of Canarian thermophilous species challenges the view of the Canary Islands (and Madeira) as a subregion within the Mediterranean Floristic Region.

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“…Curimopsis erbani García & Aguiar, 2011, Trechus detersus Wollaston, 1864, Calathus gonzalezi Mateu, 1956, Tarphius jandiensis Machado, 2012, Orthotrichum handiense Lara, Garilleti & Mazimpaka, and Laurus novocanariensis Rivas, Lousa, Prieto, Días, Costa & Aguiar). The presence of such taxa has led to the suggestion that they may be relicts of a once more mature and expansive laurel forest ecosystem, since vanished through eroded island elevation and more recent human‐induced pressure (Osorio et al, 2011). The new record presented here for Geomitopsis within this region strengthens support for a potential relict laurel forest origin for such taxa, particularly given the clear dispersal limitations within the complex, and the basal divergence of the Gf1 lineage.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hidden island endemic species and their implications for cryptic speciation within soil arthropods

Pérez‐Delgado

Arribas

Hernando

et al. 2022

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim Specialisation to the soil environment is expected to constrain the spatial scale of diversification within animal lineages. In this context, flightless arthropod lineages, adapted to soil environments, but with broad geographical ranges, represent something of an anomaly. Here we investigate the diversification process within one such ‘anomalous’ soil specialist, an eyeless and flightless beetle species strongly adapted to the endogean environment but distributed across several oceanic islands. Location Canary Islands. Taxon Geomitopsis franzi Coiffait, 1978 (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae). Methods We performed an integrative study, including molecular phylogenetics, population genomics and morphometry. Four DNA regions (two mitochondrial and two nuclear) were amplified and sequenced for 159 specimens from 58 localities sampled across five islands for phylogenetic analyses, and a dated phylogenetic tree was obtained using a mitogenome dataset. ddRAD‐seq data were generated to evaluate mtDNA lineages in sympatry against the biological species concept. Results We found high levels of genetic differentiation (>8% COI gene divergence) among populations from different islands and among geographically coherent lineages within single islands. Lineages within Tenerife presented significant patterns of isolation by distance, with ddRAD‐seq providing evidence that lineages represent biological species. Morphometric analyses revealed limited variation. Main conclusions Geomitopsis franzi is comprised of at least seven lineages that merit consideration as biological species, and is best considered as a complex of cryptic species. The limited morphological variation across these lineages is consistent with adaptation to the endogean environment placing strong constraints on morphological change. The evolution of cryptic species should be favoured when such constraints are coupled with limited dispersal ability, a trait that broadly characterises the soil mesofauna.

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Relict ecosystems of thermophilous and laurel forest as biodiversity hotspots in Fuerteventura, Canary Islands

Cited by 10 publications

References 0 publications

Groundwater flow in a relatively old oceanic volcanic island: The Betancuria area, Fuerteventura Island, Canary Islands, Spain

Groundwater flow in a relatively old oceanic volcanic island: The Betancuria area, Fuerteventura Island, Canary Islands, Spain

Time-calibrated phylogenies reveal mediterranean and pre-mediterranean origin of the thermophilous vegetation of the Canary Islands

Hidden island endemic species and their implications for cryptic speciation within soil arthropods

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