Abstract
Penas, J., Lorite, J., Alba-Sanchez, F. & Taisma, M.A. 2011. Selfincompatibility, floral parameters, and pollen characterization in the narrow endemic and threatened species Artemisia granatensis (Asteraceae). Anales Jard. Bot. Madrid 68(1): 97-105. Artemisia granatensis Boiss. is a paradigmatic species for plant conservation in Spain and Europe. It is a critically endangered (CR) endemic species growing above 2500 m in the Sierra Nevada (southern Spain). Natural populations have been considerably devastated in the past due to intensive human exploitation for folk medicine. The sparse available data concerning the reproductive biology of this species under natural conditions indicate a low reproductive success. To provide additional information on the reproductive biology of A. granatensis, and consequently information useful for the management and conservation of this species, we studied the breeding system through pollen-tube growth. In addition, some floral and pollen traits were recorded. No differences were found between populations in terms of the morphological traits of flowers and inflorescences. A. granatensis is an anemophilous species, and the data indicate that pollen transfer may be limited between isolated populations, and so contributing to an extremely low fruit-set. Results show A. granatensis is selfincompatible, probably with a sporophytic self-incompatibility system, and with no evidence of partial self-incompatibility. Reproductive traits, related to pollen morphology and settling speed may explain the low rate of recruitment in the small populations separated by geographical barriers.
Highlights
The southern area of the Iberian Peninsula has long been recognized as a centre of plant diversity and endemicity (Molero, 1994; Domínguez & al., 1996; Peñas & al., 2005), and a “phytogeographical hotspot”; that is, significant reservoirs of unique genetic diversity favourable to the evolutionary processes of Mediterranean plant species (Médail & Diadema, 2009)
There were no significant differences in total flowers/head, hermaphrodite flowers/heads, female flowers/head and natural fruitset/head between populations, the natural fruit:flower ratio was higher in AG2
We found no differences between morphological traits of reproductive structures between AG1 and AG2 (Table 2) with the exception of mature stamen length, which was higher for AG2 flowers (Table 2)
Summary
The southern area of the Iberian Peninsula has long been recognized as a centre of plant diversity and endemicity (Molero, 1994; Domínguez & al., 1996; Peñas & al., 2005), and a “phytogeographical hotspot”; that is, significant reservoirs of unique genetic diversity favourable to the evolutionary processes of Mediterranean plant species (Médail & Diadema, 2009). The largest number of endemic plant species, and one of the largest in Europe, is found in Sierra Nevada (Blanca & al., 1998) This mountain harbours the narrow endemic Artemisia granatensis Boiss. (Asteraceae), a paradigmatic species for the plant conservation in Spain and Europe (Council Directive 92/43/EEC; Fay, 1992), since it was included in the first Spanish catalogue of threatened species (BOE, 1990). Today, this species is considered critically endangered (CR) in the latest national (Moreno, 2008) and regional (Cabezudo & al., 2005) list of threatened species, with the main threats being overgrazing and collection for folk medicine. Reproductive-biology studies, should be an integral feature of any conservation project (Weller, 1994; Weekly & Race, 2001; Koul & Bhatnagar, 2007)
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