Abstract
The native Brazilian cotton Gossypium mustelinum has never been planted. It is tetraploid and may cross with cultivated cotton. Endemic to Northeast Brazil, it was known only to grow in semi-arid areas, but expeditions in 2011, 2016, and 2018 localized plants in preservation areas on the coast of Northeast Brazil (in the States of Paraiba and Pernambuco), as predicted before by niche simulations. New climatic modeling shows that new populations can still be found in the Pernambuco semi-arid area, despite the lack of herbarium and germplasm bank information. Historical data show that the preserved populations are in regions where sympatry has not occurred in the last 47 years. Gene flow is unlikely to be a threat, and communication may foster significantly in in situ preservation.
Highlights
Brazil is the center of origin of Gossypium mustelinum (G. mustelinum), one of the five allotetraploid species of the genus
The first written report about native Brazilian cotton was made by Accioli Bettencourt (1798), who describes the presence of two wild cotton trees, one of brown fiber, probably G. mustelinum, and the other of white fiber on the margins of the Contas River, where Brazilian native cotton was later localized (Menezes et al, 2014a)
The first scientific report of G. mustelinum was made by Gardner in 1838, who collected seeds and other plant materials in the municipality of Crato, state of Ceará (CE), whose exsiccatae were described by Watt (1907)
Summary
Brazil is the center of origin of Gossypium mustelinum (G. mustelinum), one of the five allotetraploid species of the genus. Brazilian Native Cotton been deposited by J.M. Fernandes at the Kew Royal Botanical Garden, attributed to the municipality of Coroatá, State of Maranhão, where there was, at that time, an important experimental station (Serviço do Algodoeiro); it is possible that these exsiccatae are derived from seeds brought from Caicó by Green and planted in Coroatá. At the end of the 1960s was the Caicó site rediscovered by researchers of the Agronomic Institute of Campinas (Neves et al, 1968) They considered it a new species and named it Gossypium chacoensis (Neves et al, 1968), today considered a synonym of G. mustelinum. The present paper recounts the discovery of new Brazilian native cotton populations on the coast, estimates the potential geographical distribution, and discusses the impact of sympatry between wild and crop species on in situ conservation
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