The International Newsletter of the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership August 2016 – January 2017 kew.org/msbp/samara ISSN 1475-8245 Issue: 30 View of Val Dosdé with Myosotis alpestris The European Alpine Seed Conservation and Research Network ELINOR BREMAN AND JONAS V. MUELLER (RBG Kew, UK), CHRISTIAN BERG AND PATRICK SCHWAGER (Karl-Franzens-Universitat Graz, Austria), BRIGITTA ERSCHBAMER, KONRAD PAGITZ AND VERA MARGREITER (Institute of Botany; University of Innsbruck, Austria), NOÉMIE FORT (CBNA, France), ANDREA MONDONI, THOMAS ABELI, FRANCESCO PORRO AND GRAZIANO ROSSI (Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e dell’Ambiente; Universita degli studi di Pavia, Italy), CATHERINE LAMBELET-HAUETER, JACQUELINE DÉTRAZ- Photo: Dr Andrea Mondoni Andrea Dr Photo: MÉROZ AND FLORIAN MOMBRIAL (Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques de la Ville de Genève, Switzerland). The European Alps are home to nearly 4,500 taxa of vascular plants, and have been recognised as one of 24 centres of plant diversity in Europe. While species richness decreases with increasing elevation, the proportion of endemic species increases – of the 501 endemic taxa in the European Alps, 431 occur in subalpine to nival belts. he varied geology of the pre and they are converting to shrub land and forest awareness of its increasing vulnerability. inner Alps, extreme temperature with reduced species diversity. Conversely, The Alpine Seed Conservation and Research T fluctuations at altitude, exposure to over-grazing in some areas (notably by Network currently brings together five plant high levels of UV radiation and short growing sheep) is leading to eutrophication and a science institutions across the Alps, housed season mean that the majority of alpine loss of species adapted to low nutrient at leading universities and botanic gardens: species are highly adapted to their harsh levels. The expansion of urban settlements, • Austria, Karl-Franzens University of Graz; and changeable environment. modern ski runs and the increase in alien Botanic Garden and invasive species are further threats. These ecosystems – and the services that Sustainable land management and the • Austria, Botanic Garden of the Institute of they provide – are under threat, and many protection of species in nature reserves will Botany, University of Innsbruck plant species require urgent conservation not be sufficient to conserve the majority of • France, Conservatoire Botanique National action. Climate change has already led to species, particularly in the context of climate Alpin an upward movement of plant distributions, change. leaving those at the top with nowhere to go. Changes in land use are affecting many A new project has been developed by RBG plant communities. A decrease in traditional Kew, with funding from the David and Story continues on page 2 land use practices, such as haymaking and Claudia Harding Foundation, to conserve grazing on high alpine grasslands, means European alpine flora and to raise 2 Samara are helping the network develop between the Continued from page 1 adaptation, gather new data on the conservation institutes involved. To raise awareness of the status of endemic species in the target threats to alpine plant communities as well areas, and investigate germination, seedling as the project’s initiatives to protect them, • Italy, University of Pavia, Department of recruitment, establishment and persistence a communication and publication strategy is Earth and Environmental Sciences in the soil seed bank of target species along also being developed, involving stakeholder • Switzerland, Conservatoire et Jardin altitudinal gradients. The research uses a groups at the local level across the whole alpine Botaniques de la Ville de Genève combination of field and laboratory experiments region. In addition to disseminating research, and results will be published in leading journals. an educational programme is being set up with The overarching aim of the project is to set There’s more information on these projects on schools in Austria and Switzerland, and through up a network for seed conservation and pages 16 and 17. institutional connections in Italy. Living collection research in the European Alps, and improve displays will also be tied in to the project at the conservation status of endangered plant A fundamental part of the project is to foster each of the botanic gardens involved. To follow species and communities in their European cooperation and collaboration, and to promote the success of the project, please visit Alpine habitats. the exchange of experience and ideas. Joint www.alpineseedconservation.eu. field trips and staff and student exchanges The five specific objectives of the network are: mean length of the growing season was about three months with mean temperature 1. Improve the conservation status of of 8°C at the soil surface. Under these grassland communities and their conditions, seeds can mature each year constituent species in the high-montane, (Wagner et al., 2010). However, germination alpine and nival altitudinal belts. ability and factors determining germination 2. Make high quality seed material available have yet to be studied. for conservation, research and restoration. R. glacialis is locally on the Red List of Ranunculus glacialis, Obergurgl, 2,850 m endangered species in North and East 3. Improve knowledge of the ecology of target Ranunculus glacialis L. is a pioneer species Tyrol, and in Vorarlberg, Austria.. In former species through specific research projects. from the upper alpine to the nival belt. times it was used in folk medicine as a 4. Develop a network for seed conservation It is among the few vascular species remedy for fever and dizziness. and research in the European Alps, able to reach the uppermost summits in fostering collaboration, development of the Alps. Nutrient-poor siliceous rocks Collected 2016. Three other collections at early-career scientists, and expanding and scree sites are the typical habitats the MSB (Italy, Finland, Austria). knowledge on key ecological species in the of this arctic-alpine species. In artificial European Alps. warming experiments in the Arctic, the REFERENCES: species showed no phenotypic plasticity 5. Raise awareness of the importance of in reproductive or phenological growth Totland, Ø. & Alatalo, J.M. (2002) Effects of Alpine grassland communities through temperature and date of snowmelt on growth, (Totland & Alatalo, 2002), suggesting that engagement with schools and public reproduction, and flowering phenology in the arctic/ R. glacialis might be highly vulnerable to alpine herb, Ranunculus glacialis. Oecologia, 133, outreach. climate change. In the Alps, reproductive 168–175. plasticity was found to be quite high with Wagner, J., Steinacher, G. & Ladinig, U. (2010): Over three field seasons, seed of 500 vascular Ranunculus glacialis L.: successful reproduction optimal sexual reproduction in the sub- plant species will be collected from grassland at the altitudinal limits of higher plant life. nival zone (i.e. at 2,880 m a.s.l.). Here, the Protoplasma, 243, 117-128. communities in the subalpine, alpine and nival Photo: B. Erschbamer B. Photo: altitudinal belts and adjacent, directly connected specialist communities. These communities A B So-called mountain wormwoods – in French include calcareous and siliceous grasslands génépi, in German Edelraute or Bergwermut, at high altitude (including dry and semi-dry in Italian genepi – like Artemisia genipi grasslands), calcareous and siliceous rock (black genepi) or Artemisia umbelliformis communities, limestone scree (alpine scree (white genepi), are traditionally used in communities), snow bed and alpine pioneer alcoholic maceration to produce an olive to communities. The first priority for sampling will pale gold-coloured herbal liqueur, popular be given to endemic and threatened species, in the Alps. or those that are particularly valuable for other reasons e.g. a species used in traditional Photo A: Artemisia Photo B: Artemisia nivalis Mountain wormwoods have been medicine or local cuisine. This approach will nivalis flowering, at harvesting time, 22 appreciated as medicinal plants since result in collections of a mix of rare, threatened 5 August 2013 September 2016 the Middle Ages. Books devoted to and more common species. aromatic plants emphasize the digestive, Artemisia nivalis Braun-Blanq. (Snow expectorant, neurotonic and stimulating The project began earlier this year and we have wormwood), is a narrow endemic species properties of these plants. Aphrodisiac already had our first, highly-successful collecting located in the area of Zermatt (Upper powers have even been attributed to them. season. Despite various challenges – poor Wallis). It grows only on calcschists ridges Indeed, it is said that ‘génépi is good for weather, late seed set, remote populations and of the Rothorn summits between 3,000 and Madam when it is Monsieur who drinks it’. poor seeding – 150 species have already been 3,400 m. A. nivalis is a species close to It doesn’t appear that A. nivalis is used for collected and conserved for future use. A. genipi and differs from it by its this reason today, which is probably a good hairlessness and strong and pleasant smell thing as it is protected at the national level. As part of the programme, one MSc and three (photo A). These plants very often grow PhD research projects investigate evolutionary close to each other, but no hybrid has been Seeds were collected for the project after patterns and processes of alpine species