Using the ancient past for establishing current threat in poorly inventoried regions

Costion, Craig M.; Liston, Jolie; Kitalong, Ann Hillmann; Iida, Akiko; Lowe, Andrew J.

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2011.12.026

Cited by 9 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Ironically, prior to embarking on this project, in an attempt to hasten progress on assessing the conservation status of tropical plant species, the first author wrote in a separate article that “it is probable that the loss of many species of Oceania’s flora and fauna have gone unrecognized and unrecorded” [ 11 ]. We set out in this project to verify the conservation status of a species that was allegedly very rare and at risk due to its proximity to an urban area.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The archipelago of Palau, Micronesia, in the western Pacific region ( Fig 1 ) of the tropics is one such region. A recent study [ 11 ] demonstrated that the original forest habitat on the largest of Palau’s islands has declined by a minimum of 39% since the settlement of humans on the islands. Given the extinction trends for the Pacific islands it may be expected that some of Palau’s endemic plant species are already in an advanced state of decline.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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DNA Barcodes Confirm the Taxonomic and Conservation Status of a Species of Tree on the Brink of Extinction in the Pacific

2016

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The taxonomic status of a single island, narrow range endemic plant species from Palau, Micronesia (Timonius salsedoi) was assessed using DNA barcode markers, additional plastid loci, and morphology in order to verify its conservation status. DNA barcode loci distinguished T. salsedoi from all other Timonius species sampled from Palau, and were supported by sequence data from the atpB-rbcL intergenic spacer region. Timonius salsedoi was only known from two mature individual trees in 2012. Due to its extremely narrow range and population size, it had previously been recommended to be listed as Critically Endangered Status under three separate IUCN Criteria. In 2014 a second survey of the population following a typhoon revealed that the only two known trees had died suggesting that this species may now be extinct. Comprehensive follow up surveys of suitable habitat for this species are urgently required.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

DNA Barcodes Confirm the Taxonomic and Conservation Status of a Species of Tree on the Brink of Extinction in the Pacific

2016

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“…Shortage of data is probably more serious in Angola than in most places elsewhere in Africa, because of the prolonged war of independence (1961–1974) and post-independence civil war (1975–2002) which left the country largely inaccessible to most researchers. In these circumstances, studies such as the present one, based on accumulated historical information, may provide initial guidance on the identification of conservation priorities and problems, providing useful insights that would otherwise be very difficult to obtain [1] , [2] , [5] , [6] , [66] . However, it is now more than one decade after the end of the conflicts in Angola and, given the growing prosperity and development in the country, it is essential that new field surveys are undertaken to document contemporary species distributions and conservation challenges.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Estimating conservation priorities from herbaria data is difficult, because a species may no longer exist in localities where it was historically recorded, and because collectors may be biased towards or against certain species or regions [2] , [5] . To overcome these problems, we used a combination of three relatively coarse criteria, which were judged useful in helping to guide future conservation efforts, despite some potential shortcomings and limitations.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Documenting Biogeographical Patterns of African Timber Species Using Herbarium Records: A Conservation Perspective Based on Native Trees from Angola

et al. 2014

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In many tropical regions the development of informed conservation strategies is hindered by a dearth of biodiversity information. Biological collections can help to overcome this problem, by providing baseline information to guide research and conservation efforts. This study focuses on the timber trees of Angola, combining herbarium (2670 records) and bibliographic data to identify the main timber species, document biogeographic patterns and identify conservation priorities. The study recognized 18 key species, most of which are threatened or near-threatened globally, or lack formal conservation assessments. Biogeographical analysis reveals three groups of species associated with the enclave of Cabinda and northwest Angola, which occur primarily in Guineo-Congolian rainforests, and evergreen forests and woodlands. The fourth group is widespread across the country, and is mostly associated with dry forests. There is little correspondence between the spatial pattern of species groups and the ecoregions adopted by WWF, suggesting that these may not provide an adequate basis for conservation planning for Angolan timber trees. Eight of the species evaluated should be given high conservation priority since they are of global conservation concern, they have very restricted distributions in Angola, their historical collection localities are largely outside protected areas and they may be under increasing logging pressure. High conservation priority was also attributed to another three species that have a large proportion of their global range concentrated in Angola and that occur in dry forests where deforestation rates are high. Our results suggest that timber tree species in Angola may be under increasing risk, thus calling for efforts to promote their conservation and sustainable exploitation. The study also highlights the importance of studying historic herbarium collections in poorly explored regions of the tropics, though new field surveys remain a priority to update historical information.

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“…They are characteristically diverse, with an area as small as two hectares potentially containing 300+ vascular woody species of trees, shrubs, and lianas [1]. Many of these species can be extremely rare and/or poorly known [2] and often their most diagnostic characters for identification (e.g., leaves, fruit and flowers) occur high in the canopy out of sight and reach. In many cases fruits and/or flowers are required for accurate identification, which can hinder progress on identification of tropical species in remote localities for years or even decades.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Building a Plant DNA Barcode Reference Library for a Diverse Tropical Flora: An Example from Queensland, Australia

et al. 2016

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A foundation for a DNA barcode reference library for the tropical plants of Australia is presented here. A total of 1572 DNA barcode sequences are compiled from 848 tropical Queensland species. The dataset represents 35% of the total flora of Queensland's Wet Tropics Bioregion, 57% of its tree species and 28% of the shrub species. For approximately half of the sampled species, we investigated the occurrence of infraspecific molecular variation in DNA barcode loci rbcLa, matK, and the trnH-psbA intergenic spacer region across previously recognized biogeographic barriers. We found preliminary support for the notion that DNA barcode reference libraries can be used as a tool for inferring biogeographic patterns at regional scales. It is expected that this dataset will find applications in taxonomic, ecological, and applied conservation research.

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Using the ancient past for establishing current threat in poorly inventoried regions

Cited by 9 publications

References 23 publications

DNA Barcodes Confirm the Taxonomic and Conservation Status of a Species of Tree on the Brink of Extinction in the Pacific

DNA Barcodes Confirm the Taxonomic and Conservation Status of a Species of Tree on the Brink of Extinction in the Pacific

Documenting Biogeographical Patterns of African Timber Species Using Herbarium Records: A Conservation Perspective Based on Native Trees from Angola

Building a Plant DNA Barcode Reference Library for a Diverse Tropical Flora: An Example from Queensland, Australia

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