Abstract
Serbian spruce (Picea omorika (Pančić) Purk.) is a rare and endangered tertiary relict and endemic species, with restricted and fragmented natural range in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, mainly around the mid-course of the Drina river. Since the middle of the 19th century, its natural range declines constantly, followed by a decline in the number of mature individuals. The decline of this forest species is slow and mainly attributed to poor regeneration and low competing ability. Given the foreseen worsening of the climate in forthcoming decades, this decline can only accelerate. In recent years, dieback related to drought has been observed as response to extreme weather events suggesting that Serbian spruce will face difficulties in adapting to climate change within its natural range. However, successful use of Serbian spruce in Central and Northern Europe indicates potentially large adaptive potential of this species which, along with the high genetic variability, outweigh the limited morphological variation, self-fertilization, and limitations related to the restricted natural range in the first place, and, indicates possible directions of migration in the second place. In this paper, current conservation actions are discussed, and strategies for the species survival in a changing environment are suggested. Since migration and adaptation are the least likely responses of this species to climate change, measures such as assisted migration may be the only strategy which will enable persistence of Serbian spruce. Current conservation programs, limited to in-situ actions, need to be supplemented with ex-situ actions and strategies. In the worst case scenario, i.e. for species such as Serbian spruce which are unable to migrate and/or adapt to changing climate, the most suitable sites should be identified and colonized in order to prevent extinction in the near future.
Highlights
1.1 Natural range of Serbian spruceSerbian spruce (Picea omorika (Pančić) Purk.) is a rare and endangered tertiary relict and endemic species, with a restricted and fragmented (~ 30 remaining populations) natural range in Western Serbia and Eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, mainly localized around the mid-course of the Drina river (Figure 1, Table 2)
Selective removal of individual trees representing Serbian spruces main competitors is recommended in dense forests with the aim to facilitate natural regeneration of Serbian spruce (Ostojić and Dinić 2012; Aleksić and Geburek 2014)
The removal of individual trees of competing tree species could be beneficial because it can create gaps with favorable light conditions which are, suitable for the establishment of Serbian spruce seedlings. Another possibility for “in situ” conservation is assisted natural regeneration at sites within or in vicinity of the Serbian spruce current natural range which are not occupied by this species currently, but at which Serbian spruce was present in the past
Summary
Serbian spruce (Picea omorika (Pančić) Purk.) is a rare and endangered tertiary relict and endemic species, with a restricted and fragmented (~ 30 remaining populations) natural range in Western Serbia and Eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, mainly localized around the mid-course of the Drina river (Figure 1, Table 2). This region represents species long-term, cryptic and last refugium (Aleksić and Geburek 2014). Serbian spruce occupies steep north-to-northwest facing slopes at altitude between 400-1,500 m a.s.l., predominantly on limestone and on serpentine (one population at site Zmajevački Potok). Climate within Serbian spruce natural range is typical for mountainous regions, with high snow cover, abundant fogs, average annual temperature around 5-7°C, and precipitation of ~1,000 mm which represents the lower limit for fir, spruce, and Serbian spruce (Gajić et al 1994)
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