scholarly journals A National Multi-Scale Assessment of Regeneration Deficit as an Indicator of Potential Risk of Forest Genetic Variation Loss

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 19
Author(s):  
Kevin M. Potter ◽  
Kurt Riitters
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
The United States ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
National Forest Inventory ◽  
Adaptive Genetic Variation ◽  
Seed Zones ◽  
Plot Network

Genetic diversity is essential because it provides a basis for adaptation and resilience to environmental stress and change. The fundamental importance of genetic variation is recognized by its inclusion in the Montréal Process sustainability criteria and indicators for temperate and boreal forests. The indicator that focuses on forest species at risk of losing genetic variation, however, has been difficult to address in a systematic fashion. We combined two broad-scale datasets to inform this indicator for the United States: (1) tree species occurrence data from the national Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) plot network and (2) climatically and edaphically defined provisional seed zones, which are proxies for among-population adaptive variation. Specifically, we calculated the estimated proportion of small trees (seedlings and saplings) relative to all trees for each species and within seed zone sub-populations, with the assumption that insufficient regeneration could lead to the loss of genetic variation. The threshold between sustainable and unsustainable proportions of small trees reflected the expectation of age–class balance at the landscape scale. We found that 46 of 280 U.S. forest tree species (16.4%) may be at risk of losing genetic variation. California and the Southeast encompassed the most at-risk species. Additionally, 39 species were potentially at risk within at least half of the seed zones in which they occurred. Seed zones in California and the Southwest had the highest proportions of tree species that may be at risk. The results could help focus conservation and management activities to prevent the loss of adaptive genetic variation within tree species.

Epiphyte Flora and Diversity on Basal Trunks of Six Old-Growth Forest Tree Species in Southern and Middle Boreal Finland

1996 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 443-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mikko Kuusinen
Keyword(s):  
Tree Species ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Old Growth ◽  
Epiphytic Lichen ◽  
Generalist Species ◽  
Salix Caprea ◽  
Forest Tree Species ◽  
Old Growth Forest ◽  
Habitat Generalist

AbstractEpiphytic lichen and bryophyte species composition, richness and diversity were surveyed on basal trunks of six common old-growth forest tree species, Picea abies, Pinus sylvestris, Betula pendula, Alnus incana, Salix caprea and Populus tremula, in two old-growth forest areas, one in southern and one in middle boreal Finland. The average species numbers per tree ranged from 18 (Picea) to 27 (Salix) in the southern and from 20 (Populus) to 31 (Salix) in the middle boreal area. A few widespread habitat-generalist species, such as the foliose lichens Hypogymnia physodes and Platismatia glauca, were most abundant on all the tree species, except Populus. Most other epiphyte species showed at least a slight preference for one or two tree species. Populus proved to have the most distinct flora characterized by the abundance of certain, rather specialized crustose lichens and bryophytes. The number of species that occurred on only one tree species was highest on Populus (9) in the southern and on Alnus (18) in the middle boreal area. Differences in bark acidity and structure were the most likely explanations for the differences between tree species in the epiphytic flora and diversity. Salix and Populus were the most important of the tree species studied for the conservation of epiphyte diversity in the boreal forests of Finland.

scholarly journals A fast, flexible and inexpensive protocol for DNA and RNA extraction for forest trees

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. e018
Author(s):  
Yusuf Kurt ◽  
Lilian Matallana-Ramirez ◽  
William Kohlway ◽  
Ross Whetten ◽  
John Frampton
Keyword(s):  
Next Generation Sequencing ◽  
Nucleic Acids ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Rna Extraction ◽  
The United States ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Next Generation ◽  
Forest Tree Species ◽  
Dna And Rna ◽  
Generation Sequencing

Aim of the study: DNA and RNA extraction are still one of the most important and challenging steps of many molecular genetics applications such as Next-Generation Sequencing technologies. In this study, traditional laboratory preparation protocols and commercially available nucleic acids extraction kits’ features were combined into a procedure suitable for extraction of either DNA or RNA in 96-well plate format at high throughput.Area of study: The study covers forest tree species from the United States of America.Materials and methods: The DNA and RNA protocol were tested on 27 species, including especially recalcitrant forest tree species, from five angiosperm and three gymnosperm families. DNA was also extracted from stored (from 2 to 6 years) silica-dried samples of 11 species of Pinaceae.Main results: The spectrophotometric analysis of DNA and RNA showed that gymnosperms yielded lower quantity, but higher quality nucleic acids than angiosperms which have variable results among species. The quantity and quality of DNA from stored samples were generally lower than fresh silica-dried samples. The RNA results showed high-enough yield (6.6 to 8.8 RIN) for downstream analyses.Research highlights: It was demonstrated that high quality and high molecular weight nucleic acids for Next-Generation Sequencing applications can be isolated from hundreds of samples from a wide range of taxonomic groups. The new protocol has features similar to both traditional laboratory and commercial extraction kits; is easy to set up in any molecular research laboratory, can be applied to a large number of samples (hundreds) in a working day, uses inexpensive reagents and supplies, and is compatible with automation.Key words: Angiosperms; gymnosperms; isolation protocol; nucleic acids.

scholarly journals The genetic architecture of local adaptation I: The genomic landscape of foxtail pine (Pinus balfouriana Grev. & Balf.) as revealed from a high-density linkage map

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher J Friedline ◽  
Brandon M Lind ◽  
Erin M Hobson ◽  
Douglas E Harwood ◽  
Annette Delfino Mix ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Linkage Map ◽  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Genetic Architecture ◽  
Evolutionary Dynamics ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Linkage Maps ◽  
Adaptive Genetic Variation ◽  
Sequencing Technologies ◽  
Pinus Balfouriana

Explaining the origin and evolutionary dynamics of the genetic architecture of adaptation is a major research goal of evolutionary genetics. Despite controversy surrounding success of the attempts to accomplish this goal, a full understanding of adaptive genetic variation necessitates knowledge about the genomic location and patterns of dispersion for the genetic components affecting fitness-related phenotypic traits. Even with advances in next generation sequencing technologies, the production of full genome sequences for non-model species is often cost prohibitive, especially for tree species such as pines where genome size often exceeds 20 to 30 Gbp. We address this need by constructing a dense linkage map for fox- tail pine (Pinus balfouriana Grev. & Balf.), with the ultimate goal of uncovering and explaining the origin and evolutionary dynamics of adaptive genetic variation in natural populations of this forest tree species. We utilized megagametophyte arrays (n = 76?95 megagametophytes/tree) from four maternal trees in combination with double-digestion restriction site associated DNA sequencing (ddRADseq) to produce a consensus linkage map covering 98.58% of the foxtail pine genome, which was estimated to be 1276 cM in length (95% CI: 1174cM to 1378cM). A novel bioinformatic approach using iterative rounds of marker ordering and imputation was employed to produce single-tree linkage maps (507?17066 contigs/map; lengths: 1037.40?1572.80 cM). These linkage maps were collinear across maternal trees, with highly correlated marker orderings (Spearman's ρ > 0.95). A consensus linkage map derived from these single-tree linkage maps contained 12 linkage groups along which 20 655 contigs were non-randomly distributed across 901 unique positions (n = 23 contigs/position), with an average spacing of 1.34 cM between adjacent positions. Of the 20 655 contigs positioned on the consensus linkage map, 5627 had enough sequence similarity to contigs contained within the most recent build of the loblolly pine (P. taeda L.) genome to identify them as putative homologs containing both genic and non-genic loci. Importantly, all 901 unique positions on the consensus linkage map had at least one contig with putative homology to loblolly pine. When combined with the other biological signals that predominate in our data (e.g., correlations of recombination fractions across single trees), we show that dense linkage maps for non-model forest tree species can be efficiently constructed using next generation sequencing technologies. We subsequently discuss the usefulness of these maps as community-wide resources and as tools with which to test hypotheses about the genetic architecture of adaptation.

scholarly journals Occurrence but not intensity of mortality rises towards the climatic trailing edge of tree species ranges in European forests

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Changenet ◽  
Paloma Ruiz-Benito ◽  
Sophia Ratcliffe ◽  
Thibaut Fréjaville ◽  
Juliette Archambeau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tree Species ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Tree Mortality ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
National Forest Inventory ◽  
Forest Composition ◽  
Trailing Edge ◽  
Species Ranges ◽  
Geographical Patterns ◽  
Background Mortality

AbstractAimTree mortality is increasing worldwide, leading to changes in forest composition and altering global biodiversity. Yet, due to the multi-faceted stochastic nature of tree mortality, large-scale spatial patterns of mortality across species ranges and their underlying drivers remain difficult to understand. Our main goal is to describe the geographical patterns and drivers of the occurrence and intensity of tree mortality in Europe. We hypothesize that the occurrence of mortality represents background mortality and is higher in the margin than the core populations, whereas the intensity of mortality could have a more even distribution according to the spatial and temporal stochasticity of die-off events.LocationEurope (Spain, France, Germany, Belgium, Sweden and Finland)Time period1981 to 2014.Major taxa studiedMore than 1.5 million trees belonging to 20 major forest tree speciesMethodsWe develop hurdle models to tease apart the occurrence and intensity of tree mortality in National Forest Inventory plots at range-wide scale. The occurrence of mortality indicates that at least one tree has died in the plot and the intensity of mortality refers to the number of trees dead per plot.ResultsThe highest mortality occurrence was found in peripheral regions and the climatic trailing edge linked with drought, whereas the intensity of mortality was driven by competition, drought and high temperatures and was uniformly scattered across species ranges.Main conclusionsOur findings provide a new perspective in our understanding of tree mortality across species ranges. We show that tree background mortality but not die-off is generally higher in the trailing edge populations, but whether other demographic traits such as growth, reproduction and regeneration would also decrease at the trailing edge of European tree populations needs to be explored.

scholarly journals Mycorrhizal dominance reduces forest-tree species diversity

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexis Carteron ◽  
Mark Vellend ◽  
Etienne Laliberté
Keyword(s):  
Species Diversity ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Species Coexistence ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Arbuscular Mycorrhizal ◽  
The United States ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Arbuscular Mycorrhizas ◽  
Tree Diversity ◽  
Tree Species Diversity

SUMMARYEctomycorrhizas and arbuscular mycorrhizas, the two most widespread plant-fungal symbioses, are thought to differentially influence tree species diversity, with positive plant-soil feedbacks favoring locally abundant ectomycorrhizal tree species and negative feedbacks promoting species coexistence and diversity in arbuscular mycorrhizal forests. While seedling recruitment studies and cross-biome patterns of plant diversity and mycorrhizal dominance support this hypothesis, it remains to be tested at the forest stand level over continental scales. Here, we analyze ∼85,000 forest plots across the United States to show that both ectomycorrhizal-dominated and arbuscular mycorrhizal-dominated forests show relatively low tree diversity, while forests with a mixture of mycorrhizal strategies support a higher number of tree species. Our findings suggest that mycorrhizal dominance, rather than mycorrhizal type, shapes tree diversity in forests.

scholarly journals Dominant forest tree species are potentially vulnerable to climate change over large portions of their range even at high latitudes

PeerJ ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. e2218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Périé ◽  
Sylvie de Blois
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Continental Scale ◽  
Climate Policies ◽  
Species Vulnerability ◽  
Suitable Habitats ◽  
Management Issues

Projecting suitable conditions for a species as a function of future climate provides a reasonable, although admittedly imperfect, spatially explicit estimate of species vulnerability associated with climate change. Projections emphasizing range shifts at continental scale, however, can mask contrasting patterns at local or regional scale where management and policy decisions are made. Moreover, models usually show potential for areas to become climatically unsuitable, remain suitable, or become suitable for a particular species with climate change, but each of these outcomes raises markedly different ecological and management issues. Managing forest decline at sites where climatic stress is projected to increase is likely to be the most immediate challenge resulting from climate change. Here we assess habitat suitability with climate change for five dominant tree species of eastern North American forests, focusing on areas of greatest vulnerability (loss of suitability in the baseline range) in Quebec (Canada) rather than opportunities (increase in suitability). Results show that these species are at risk of maladaptation over a remarkably large proportion of their baseline range. Depending on species, 5–21% of currently climatically suitable habitats are projected to be at risk of becoming unsuitable. This suggests that species that have traditionally defined whole regional vegetation assemblages could become less adapted to these regions, with significant impact on ecosystems and forest economy. In spite of their well-recognised limitations and the uncertainty that remains, regionally-explicit risk assessment approaches remain one of the best options to convey that message and the need for climate policies and forest management adaptation strategies.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document