Science Enabled by Specimen Data
Bugado, R. E., N. Shrestha, R. A. Magri, J. Prado, and J. C. Lopes. 2025. Vanishing ecosystems: The looming threat of climate change on an iconic genus Vellozia in the Brazilian campos rupestres. Global Ecology and Conservation 58: e03439. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03439
Climate change poses a significant threat to biodiversity and habitats worldwide, with mountainous regions and endemic species particularly vulnerable. One such ecosystem is the campos rupestres, a mountainous environment in the highlands of central-eastern Brazil, characterized by high species richness and endemism. Among this ecosystem's most diverse and abundant endemic genera is Vellozia (Velloziaceae), comprising 127 species. Using species distribution modeling, we assessed how climate change will likely affect suitable habitats for the genus. Additionally, we conducted IUCN extinction risk assessments and applied the EDGE2 method, incorporating a phylogenetic framework to identify species that should be prioritized for conservation. Our findings indicate that, on average, each species of Vellozia is expected to lose 84.26 % of its suitable habitat by 2060, with 13 species projected to lose 100 % of their habitat. Over half of the genus is projected to lose over 92 % of its suitable habitat. The species richness and endemism of Vellozia in the campos rupestres will diminish substantially in both geographic extent and species count. This decline is particularly concerning given that nearly half of the genus is microendemic, with 16 species occurring entirely outside protected areas. These findings highlight the potential for climate change to drastically reduce the habitat size and species richness of Vellozia and overall biodiversity within the campos rupestres ecosystem.
Barker, B. S. 2024. Climate matching models for Ceratapion basicorne (Coleoptera: Apionidae), a biocontrol agent of yellow starthistle Y.-Q. Liu [ed.],. Journal of Economic Entomology. https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toae299
Abstract Ceratapion basicorne (Illiger) (Coleoptera: Apionidae), a weevil native to Europe and western Asia, shows promise for enhancing the control of yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis L.), an invasive annual forb in the western United States. However, a paucity of data on this biocontrol agent’s environmental constraints has made it difficult to assess the suitability of potential release locations. Climate matching models were developed for C. basicorne to help identify areas of the western United States with similar climates to the source area of breeding colonies being used for releases (home location). The models used climate variables derived from daily estimates of minimum temperature, maximum temperature, precipitation, and soil moisture for a 30-yr period spanning 1991–2020 at 1 km2 resolution. Of the areas where C. solstitialis is known to occur, the Central California Foothills, Eastern Cascades Foothills, Columbia Plateau, and mountainous parts of northcentral Utah had the most similar climates to the home location. Of these areas, the Eastern Cascades foothills in northeastern California and Wasatch Range in Utah occurred at a similar latitude as the home location, which may be important to consider if C. basicorne has photoperiodic diapause. The least similar climates occurred in wet coastal regions, high-elevation (cold) mountains, and hot deserts; however, C. solstitialis has not been detected in most of these areas. The development of process-based models for predicting the establishment of this agent will require a more detailed understanding of the agent’s requirements for development and survival.
Mingou, P., M. Gueye, T. Bayet, and C. Cambier. 2024. First records of Selaginella kraussiana and Selaginella subcordata from Senegal (Selaginellaceae). Biodiversity Data Journal 12. https://doi.org/10.3897/bdj.12.e134350
AbstractBackgroundThe monogeneric family Selaginellaceae is made up of about 700 species distributed throughout the world, but the most concentrated part is in tropical and subtropical areas. According to the most recent infrageneric classification of the genus Selaginella, six or seven subgenera can be recognised and perhaps 700 species. The genus is monophyletic, cosmopolitan, characterised by the presence of rhizophores, ligulated leaves and has a reniform adaxial sporangia with two type of spores (heterospory).New informationThe records of two species are reported, that is S.kraussiana (Kunze) A.Braun and S.subcordata A.Braun ex Kuhn, which are new for the state of Senegal. Ecological traits, especially related to the habitat and altitude-elevation distribution, are also described for these species. Both species were collected in the south of Senegal, more precisely in the region of Kédougou for S.Kraussiana and in the regions of Kédougou, Tambacounda and Ziguinchor for S.subcordata.
Hagelstam-Renshaw, C., J. J. Ringelberg, C. Sinou, W. Cardinal-McTeague, and A. Bruneau. 2024. Biome evolution in subfamily Cercidoideae (Leguminosae): a tropical arborescent clade with a relictual depauperate temperate lineage. Brazilian Journal of Botany 48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40415-024-01058-z
Some plant lineages remain within the same biome over time (biome conservatism), whereas others seem to adapt more easily to new biomes. The c. 398 species (14 genera) of subfamily Cercidoideae (Leguminosae or Fabaceae) are found in many biomes around the world, particularly in the tropical regions of South America, Asia and Africa, and display a variety of growth forms (small trees, shrubs, lianas and herbaceous perennials). Species distribution maps derived from cleaned occurrence records were compiled and compared with existing biome maps and with the literature to assign species to biomes. Rainforest (144 species), succulent (44 species), savanna (36 species), and temperate (10 species) biomes were found to be important in describing the global distribution of Cercidoideae, with many species occurring in more than one biome. Two phylogenetically isolated species-poor temperate ( Cercis ) and succulent ( Adenolobus ) biome lineages are sister to two broadly distributed species-rich tropical clades. Ancestral state reconstructions on a time-calibrated phylogeny suggest biome shifts occurred throughout the evolutionary history of the subfamily, with shifts between the succulent and rainforest biomes, from the rainforest to savanna, from the succulent to savanna biome, and one early occurring shift into (or from) the temperate biome. Of the 26 inferred shifts in biome, three are closely associated with a shift from the ancestral tree/shrub growth form to a liana or herbaceous perennial habit. Only three of the 13 inferred transcontinental dispersal events are associated with biome shifts. Overall, we find that biome shifts tend to occur within the same continent and that dispersals to new continents tend to occur within the same biome, but that nonetheless the biome-conserved and biogeographically structured Cercidoideae have been able to adapt to different environments through time.
Streiff, S. J. R., E. O. Ravomanana, M. Rakotoarinivo, M. Pignal, E. P. Pimparé, R. H. J. Erkens, and T. L. P. Couvreur. 2024. High-quality herbarium-label transcription by citizen scientists improves taxonomic and spatial representation of the tropical plant family Annonaceae. Adansonia 46. https://doi.org/10.5252/adansonia2024v46a18
Herbarium specimens provide an important and central resource for biodiversity research. Making these records digitally available to end-users represents numerous challenges, in particular, transcribing metadata associated with specimen labels. In this study, we used the citizen science initiative ‘Les Herbonautes’ and the Récolnat network to transcribe specific data from all herbarium specimen labels stored at the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris of the large tropical plant family Annonaceae. We compared this database with publicly available global biodiversity repository data and expert checklists. We investigated spatial and taxonomic advances in data availability at the global and country scales. A total of 20 738 specimens were transcribed over the course of more than two years contributing to and significantly extending the previously available specimen and species data for Annonaceae worldwide. We show that several regions, mainly in Africa and South East Asia not covered by online global datasets, are uniquely available in the P herbarium, probably linked to past history of the museum’s botanical exploration. While acknowledging the challenges faced during the transcription of historic specimens by citizen scientists, this study highlights the positive impact of adding records to global datasets both in space and time. This is illustrative for researchers, collection managers, policy makers as well as funders. These datasets will be valuable for numerous future studies in biodiversity research, including ecology, evolution, conservation and climate change science.
Magri, R. A., F. Luebert, A. Cabral, S. Alcantara, L. G. Lohmann, J. Prado, and J. C. Lopes. 2024. Historical biogeography of Vellozia (Velloziaceae) reveals range expansion in South American mountaintops after climatic cooling events and increased diversification rates after the occupation of Southern Espinhaço Province. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. https://doi.org/10.1093/botlinnean/boae072
The campos rupestres and the Brazilian Atlantic Forest Inselbergs (BAFI) are highly diverse vegetation types that grow on mountaintops of eastern Brazil and show outstanding levels of endemism. The plant family Velloziaceae is an iconic element of these vegetations, with the genus Vellozia, being exceptionally abundant in both these vegetations. In this study, we use Vellozia as a model to address three main questions: (i) What was the distribution of Vellozia’s most recent common ancestor? (ii) Did the range expansions of Vellozia occur during periods characterized by global cooling? (iii) When did Vellozia colonize the different South American highlands they occupy nowadays? To address these questions, we reconstructed the phylogeny of Vellozia using sequences of four molecular markers analysed using Bayesian and maximum likelihood inferences. We used the resulting phylogeny to reconstruct the ancestral distribution of Vellozia using the DEC model. Our findings indicate that Vellozia originated and subsequently diversified in the Oligocene, when the genus was broadly distributed through the Andes, BAFI, Cerrado, Caatinga, and the Chapada Diamantina, suggesting that the Cerrado may acted as a corridor between the Andes and eastern mountaintop vegetations. Vellozia subsequently occupied the southern Espinhaço during the Early Miocene, which was followed by increased diversification rates and several range expansions, especially after the Middle-Miocene Climatic Optimum, when cooler and drier periods allowed the expansion of open environments and the retraction of forests, allowing Vellozia to expand their distribution. These results highlight the unique evolutionary history of Vellozia and the importance of climatic cooling for the expansion of the genus.
Saunders, T. C., I. Larridon, W. J. Baker, R. L. Barrett, F. Forest, E. Françoso, O. Maurin, et al. 2024. Tangled webs and spider‐flowers: Phylogenomics, biogeography, and seed morphology inform the evolutionary history of Cleomaceae. American Journal of Botany 111. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajb2.16399
Premise Cleomaceae is an important model clade for studies of evolutionary processes including genome evolution, floral form diversification, and photosynthetic pathway evolution. Diversification and divergence patterns in Cleomaceae remain tangled as research has been restricted by its worldwide distribution, limited genetic sampling and species coverage, and a lack of definitive fossil calibration points.MethodsWe used target sequence capture and the Angiosperms353 probe set to perform a phylogenetic study of Cleomaceae. We estimated divergence times and biogeographic analyses to explore the origin and diversification of the family. Seed morphology across extant taxa was documented with multifocal image‐stacking techniques and morphological characters were extracted, analyzed, and compared to fossil records.ResultsWe recovered a well‐supported and resolved phylogenetic tree of Cleomaceae generic relationships that includes 236 (~86%) species. We identified 11 principal clades and confidently placed Cleomella as sister to the rest of the family. Our analyses suggested that Cleomaceae and Brassicaceae diverged ~56 mya, and Cleomaceae began to diversify ~53 mya in the Palearctic and Africa. Multiple transatlantic disjunct distributions were identified. Seeds were imaged from 218 (~80%) species in the family and compared to all known fossil species.ConclusionsOur results represent the most comprehensive phylogenetic study of Cleomaceae to date. We identified transatlantic disjunctions and proposed explanations for these patterns, most likely either long‐distance dispersals or contractions in latitudinal distributions caused by climate change over geological timescales. We found that seed morphology varied considerably but mostly mirrored generic relationships.
Marks, R. A., L. Van Der Pas, J. Schuster, I. S. Gilman, and R. VanBuren. 2024. Convergent evolution of desiccation tolerance in grasses. Nature Plants 10: 1112–1125. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41477-024-01729-5
Desiccation tolerance has evolved repeatedly in plants as an adaptation to survive extreme environments. Plants use similar biophysical and cellular mechanisms to survive life without water, but convergence at the molecular, gene and regulatory levels remains to be tested. Here we explore the evolutionary mechanisms underlying the recurrent evolution of desiccation tolerance across grasses. We observed substantial convergence in gene duplication and expression patterns associated with desiccation. Syntenic genes of shared origin are activated across species, indicative of parallel evolution. In other cases, similar metabolic pathways are induced but using different gene sets, pointing towards phenotypic convergence. Species-specific mechanisms supplement these shared core mechanisms, underlining the complexity and diversity of evolutionary adaptations to drought. Our findings provide insight into the evolutionary processes driving desiccation tolerance and highlight the roles of parallel and convergent evolution in response to environmental challenges. Marks et al. explore the repeated evolution of desiccation tolerance in grasses. Their analysis of diverse resurrection grasses reveals significant genetic convergence and parallel evolution, suggesting a shared foundation for adapting to extreme drought.
Bürger, M., and J. Chory. 2024. A potential role of heat‐moisture couplings in the range expansion of Striga asiatica. Ecology and Evolution 14. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11332
Parasitic weeds in the genera Orobanche, Phelipanche (broomrapes) and Striga (witchweeds) have a devastating impact on food security across much of Africa, Asia and the Mediterranean Basin. Yet, how climatic factors might affect the range expansion of these weeds in the context of global environmental change remains unexplored. We examined satellite‐based environmental variables such as surface temperature, root zone soil moisture, and elevation, in relation to parasitic weed distribution and environmental conditions over time, in combination with observational data from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). Our analysis reveals contrasting environmental and altitude preferences in the genera Striga and Orobanche. Asiatic witchweed (Striga asiatica), which infests corn, rice, sorghum, and sugar cane crops, appears to be expanding its range in high elevation habitats. It also shows a significant association with heat‐moisture coupling events, the frequency of which is rising in such environments. These results point to geographical shifts in distribution and abundance in parasitic weeds due to climate change.
Jinga, P., and T. Manyangadze. 2024. Variable intraspecific response to climate change in a medicinally important African tree species, Vachellia sieberiana (DC.) (paperbark thorn). Ecology and Evolution 14. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11314
Climate change is predicted to disproportionately impact sub‐Saharan Africa, with potential devastating consequences on plant populations. Climate change may, however, impact intraspecific taxa differently. The aim of the study was to determine the current distribution and impact of climate change on three varieties of Vachellia sieberiana, that is, var. sieberiana, var. villosa and var. woodii. Ensemble species distribution models (SDMs) were built in “biomod2” using 66, 45, and 137 occurrence records for var. sieberiana, var. villosa, and var. woodii, respectively. The ensemble SDMs were projected to 2041–2060 and 2081–2100 under three general circulation models (GCMs) and two shared socioeconomic pathways (SSPs). The three GCMs were the Canadian Earth System Model version 5, the Institut Pierre‐Simon Laplace Climate Model version 6A Low Resolution, and the Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate version 6. The suitable habitat of var. sieberiana predominantly occurs in the Sudanian and Zambezian phytochoria while that of var. villosa largely occurs in the Sudanian phytochorion. The suitable habitat of var. woodii mainly occurs in the Zambezian phyotochorion. There is coexistence of var. villosa and var. sieberiana in the Sudanian phytochorion while var. sieberiana and var. woodii coexist in the Zambezian phytochorion. Under SSP2‐4.5 in 2041–2060 and averaged across the three GCMs, the suitable habitat expanded by 33.8% and 119.7% for var. sieberiana and var. villosa, respectively. In contrast, the suitable habitat of var. woodii contracted by −8.4%. Similar trends were observed in 2041–2060 under SSP5‐8.5 [var. sieberiana (38.6%), var. villosa (139.0%), and var. woodii (−10.4%)], in 2081–2100 under SSP2‐4.5 [var. sieberiana (4.6%), var. villosa (153.4%), and var. woodii (−14.4%)], and in 2081–2100 under SSP5‐8.5 [var. sieberiana (49.3%), var. villosa (233.4%), and var. woodii (−30.7%)]. Different responses to climate change call for unique management and conservation decisions for the varieties.