A carregar...
Projeto de investigação
Conservation planning in tropical regions under climate change: a case-study of Angola flora.
Financiador
Autores
Publicações
Species Diversity and Endemicity in the Angolan Leguminosae Flora
Publication . Catarino, Sílvia; Goyder, David; Darbyshire, Iain; Costa, Esperança; Figueira, Rui; Duarte, Maria Cristina; Romeiras, Maria M.
Angola has a great diversity of species and ecosystems and a high level of endemism.
However, knowledge of the native flora remains very incomplete and outdated.
Leguminosae is the largest family in the country, including many species which are
of local or more regional economic importance. Based on an extensive review of
bibliographic sources, natural history collections, and online databases, the checklist
of Angolan Leguminosae plants was updated, including data on their native distribution,
conservation status, and principal uses. The endemic taxa were the subject of additional
investigation, including the main habitat, the number of collections preserved in herbaria,
and the locality of the first collection. We identified 953 Leguminosae taxa occurring
in Angola, of which 165 are endemic to the country. Among the 180 genera found,
Crotalaria (136) and Indigofera (96) have the highest number of taxa. Almost half of the
studied species have important applications, mainly in traditional medicine (385), forage
(267), timber (188), and food (120). Nevertheless, only 27.7% have been assessed
according to the IUCN Red List and 10 species are classified as threatened. Thirty-three
endemics are known only from the type specimen, revealing the lack of knowledge on
these species and the need for further field research. More than 30 type specimens
were collected in the Serra da Chela, which highlights the importance of this region for
biodiversity conservation
Diversification of Aeonium Species Across Macaronesian Archipelagos: Correlations Between Genome-Size Variation and Their Conservation Status
Publication . Brilhante, Miguel; Roxo, Guilherme; Catarino, Sílvia; Dos Santos, Patrícia; Reyes-Betancort, J. Alfredo; Caujapé-Castells, Juli; Sequeira, Miguel Menezes; Talhinhas, Pedro; Romeiras, Maria M.
The rich endemic flora of the Macaronesian Islands places these oceanic archipelagos
among the top biodiversity hotspots worldwide. The radiations that have determined the
evolution of many of these insular lineages resulted in a wealth of endemic species, many
of which occur in a wide range of ecological niches, but show small distribution areas in
each of them. Aeonium (Crassulaceae) is the most speciose lineage in the Canary Islands
(ca. 40 taxa), and as such can be considered a good model system to understand the
diversification dynamics of oceanic endemic floras. The present study aims to assess the
genome size variation within Aeonium distribution, i.e., the Macaronesian archipelagos
of Madeira, Canaries and Cabo Verde, and analyse it together with information
on distribution (i.e., geography and conservation status), taxonomy (i.e., sections),
morphological traits (i.e., growth-form), geological data (i.e., island’s geological age),
and environmental variables (i.e., altitude, annual mean temperature, and precipitation).
Based on extensive fieldwork, a cytogeographic screening of 24 Aeonium species was
performed. The conservation status of these species was assessed based on IUCN
criteria. 61% of the taxa were found to be threatened (4% Endangered and 57%
Vulnerable). For the first time, the genome size of a comprehensive sample of Aeonium
across the Macaronesian archipelagos was estimated, and considerable differences in
Cx-values were found, ranging from0.984 pg (A. dodrantale) to 2.768 pg (A. gorgoneum).
An overall positive correlation between genome size and conservation status was found,
with the more endangered species having the larger genomes on average. However,
only slight relationships were found between genome size, morphological traits, and environmental variables. These results underscore the importance of characterizing the
cytogenomic diversity and conservation status of endemic plants found in Macaronesian
Islands, providing, therefore, new data to establish conservation priorities.
Bayesian Methods to Analyze Historical Collections in Time and Space: A Case Study Using Cabo Verde Endemic Flora
Publication . Romeiras, Maria M.; Carine, Mark; Duarte, Maria Cristina; Catarino, Silvia; Dias, Filipe S.; Borda-de-Água, Luís
Biological collections, including herbarium specimens, are unique sources of biodiversity data presenting a window on the history of the development and accumulation of knowledge of a specific geographical region. Understanding how the process of discovery impacts that knowledge is particularly important for oceanic islands which are often characterized by both high levels of endemic diversity and high proportions of threatened taxa. The archipelagos of the Macaronesian region (i.e. Azores, Canaries, Savages, Madeira, and Cabo Verde) have been the focus of attention for scientific expeditions since the end of the 17th century. However, there is no integrated study describing the historical process of collecting, discovery and description of its flora. Using as a case study the Cabo Verde endemic angiosperm flora, we review the history of collecting in the flora and apply a Bayesian approach to assess the accumulation of species discovery, through time and space across the nine islands of the archipelago. Our results highlight the central role not only of natural characteristics (e.g. area, age, maximum altitude and average value of the terrain ruggedness index) but also historical factors (i.e. the location of major harbors) for the development of knowledge of the flora. The main factors that have determined the process of species description in the archipelago and how this impact our understanding of diversity patterns across archipelagos are discussed.
Unidades organizacionais
Descrição
Palavras-chave
Contribuidores
Financiadores
Entidade financiadora
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
Programa de financiamento
Número da atribuição
SFRH/BD/120054/2016