Endangered plant species in the Southern Bug enclave (Ukraine): genetics, evolutionary history and biogeography
| Name: | Endangered plant species in the Southern Bug enclave (Ukraine): genetics, evolutionary history and biogeography |
|---|---|
| Researchers: |
Bartiš Igor (head – principal researcher) Kolomiiets Ganna (member of research team) |
| Provider: | |
| Number: | 5449-2023 EMBO |
| Realization from: | 2024 |
| Realization to: | 2024 |
| Summary: | Сrystalic outcrops in the Southern Bug River basin are one of Eurasia's oldest landmasses. TheS. Bug granite flora is possibly connected to Ancient Mediterranean as one of the centres of floristic diversity because a group of plant species with disjunctive home ranges is distributed in the Bug region and in the Balkans. The ranges of rare species are currently decreasing. Moehringia hypanica (Caryophyllaceae) is the rarest and most threatened plant species of S.Bug’s outcrops. It has only five populations in the world, the complete range is 25 sq. km, and the overall number of plants is around five thousand individuals. However, the species is listed in Resolution 6 of the Bern Convention, but little known about it due to its local distribution. Its populations are declining, and the cultivation in the open ground was unsuccessful. We will study the phylogeography of M. hypanica and all 12 species of the genus Moehringia that are found in the Balkans. We will establish phylogenetic and phylogeographical relationships between these species, and estimate the ages of disjunctions within the Balkans and between the Balkan and Bug regions. We will determine morphological characters useful for the recognition of natural groups of populations in the field. We will localize the most likely centres of origin of each natural taxon. We will estimate and compare genetic diversity within all populations of M.hypanica and within representative samples of populations of its closest relatives from the Balkans. We will determine centers of genetic diversity for all sampled species. This information will help to develop measures for efficient conservation of the endemic taxa. M.hypanica is unevenly distributed on visually identical rocks. Plants are most vulnerable in the early stages of ontogenetic development and perish en masse in dry years. Under conditions of climatic chambers, we will determine the norms of light, humidity, and temperature, for further reintroduction. |