Cities and Disturbed Areas as Man-made Shelters for Orchid Communities

Many species from the family Orchidaceae spread in anthropogenic habitats and numerous studies documenting this process are known. Unfortunately, such data are scattered throughout various papers and reports, sometimes fragmentary and hard to reach (the ‘grey literature’). Scientific elaboration on this topic still lacks a comprehensive review and summary of the scale of this phenomenon. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to gather, review and analyse such data, seeking the answer to the question whether the man-made habitats can be considered as refugee for orchids. The paper summarises data on the occurrence of orchid species in man-made habitats in Europe originating from published and unpublished sources. The particular emphasis was placed in urban habitats. For this purpose, the floristically data from 42 European cities were used. The conducted studies showed that the apohytism phenomenon in the family Orchidaceae was more widespread than had been previously reported. As a result, 70 species of orchids in the distinguished man-made habitats were found. The majority of the species grow on sand and clay pits. The most common species were Epipactis helleborine and Dactylorhiza majalis. The gathered data have confirmed that man-made habitats become refugee for many orchid species in the aftermath of the loss of their natural habitats. Thus, protection of sites transformed by man with orchid occurrence should be taken into consideration. These sites can become a source of very useful information for biogeographically and phylo-geographically analyses of many valuable and endangered species

Diversity of Epipactis palustris (L.) Crantz (Orchidaceae) pollinators and visitors in conditions of Kyiv city (Ukraine)

Epipactis palustris (L.) Crantz is a protected species in Ukraine. In order to organize optimal protection measures comprehensive studies of various aspects of its biology are necessary. The aim of this study was to determine the pollinators and visitors of E. рalustris. A studies was conducted in Kyiv city (Ukraine) between 2020 and 2022. The research focused on arthropod visitors in two human-made populations. 31 families of 48 genera from 9 arthropod orders were identified and established. Hymenoptera, Coleoptera and Diptera were represented by the greatest number of species. Еvaluation of visitor activity show that Hymenoptera were the most frequent visitors. A vital role in E. palustris pollination plays Halictidae, Apidae and Coccinellidae. It was found that populations of E. palustris in the conditions of the Kyiv city form a unique self-regulating biocenosis that provides shelter and food for 53 identified species of arthropods. E. palustris in the conditions of Kyiv is mainly characterized by entomophily. The behavior of some insects indirectly indicates chemical mimicry for the attraction of pollinating insects and predatory insects for biological protection against pests.Epipactis palustris (L.) Crantz je zavarovana vrsta v Ukrajini. Za organizacijo optimalnih varstvenih ukrepov so potrebne obsežne študije različnih vidikov njegove biologije. Namen te raziskave je bil določiti opraševalce in obiskovalce E. рalustris. Študija je bila izvedena v mestu Kijev (Ukrajina) med letoma 2020 in 2022. Raziskava se je osredotočila na obiskovalce členonožcev v dveh populacijah, ki jih je ustvaril človek. Identificiranih in ustanovljenih je bilo 31 družin 48 rodov iz 9 redov členonožcev. Z največjim številom vrst so bile zastopane Hymenoptera, Coleoptera in Diptera. Ocena aktivnosti obiskovalcev je pokazala, da so bili najpogostejši obiskovalci Hymenoptera. Ključno vlogo pri opraševanju E. palustris imajo Halictidae, Apidae in Coccinellidae. Ugotovljeno je bilo, da populacije E. palustris v razmerah mesta Kijev tvorijo edinstveno samoregulacijsko biocenozo, ki zagotavlja zavetje in hrano za 53 identificiranih vrst členonožcev. Za E. palustris v Kijevu je značilna predvsem entomofilija. Obnašanje nekaterih žuželk posredno kaže na kemično mimikrijo za privabljanje žuželk opraševalcev in žuželk plenilcev za biološko zaščito pred škodljivci

Simple identification tools in FishBase

Simple identification tools for fish species were included in the FishBase information system from its inception. Early tools made use of the relational model and characters like fin ray meristics. Soon pictures and drawings were added as a further help, similar to a field guide. Later came the computerization of existing dichotomous keys, again in combination with pictures and other information, and the ability to restrict possible species by country, area, or taxonomic group. Today, www.FishBase.org offers four different ways to identify species. This paper describes these tools with their advantages and disadvantages, and suggests various options for further development. It explores the possibility of a holistic and integrated computeraided strategy

Chapter Urban and Industrial Habitats: How Important They Are for Ecosystem Services

The sustainable management of natural resources can make human survival possible. Sustainable management is based on a deep understanding of the complex mechanisms of the Earth’s natural ecosystems and of how those resources can be managed without compromising future benefits and availability. The sustainable management of natural resources becomes much more complicated when there is severe and constant anthropogenic impact, and therefore, an interdisciplinary approach has to be undertaken to improve the understanding, assessment, and maintenance of the natural capital, and the related ecosystem services, in urban-industrial areas. In ecological restoration, the biggest challenge is to find a general consensus of suitable biodiversity indicators and economically viable measures, which will produce multiple socially and ecologically guided environmental benefits. There is difficulty in reaching such consensus because of the complexity, and differing understanding, of the biodiversity concept. In an effort to restore sites disturbed by industrial (mining) activities, restoration projects should involve ecologically based methods and approaches, which will be able to fulfill many stakeholders’ expectations for sustainable development and human well-being. The integrated natural and human models for sustainable management can used to understand the dynamics of ecosystems, including biodiversity and trophic levels (including mid-trophic consumer influences), in order to simulate and evaluate different management scenarios in relation to biodiversity and ecosystem services. There is still a need for the increasing understanding of the role of biodiversity and ecosystem service identification as important factors influencing the dynamics of ecosystem and sustainable management scenarios

Urban and Industrial Habitats: How Important They Are for Ecosystem Services

The sustainable management of natural resources can make human survival possible. Sustainable management is based on a deep understanding of the complex mechanisms of the Earth’s natural ecosystems and of how those resources can be managed without compromising future benefits and availability. The sustainable management of natural resources becomes much more complicated when there is severe and constant anthropogenic impact, and therefore, an interdisciplinary approach has to be undertaken to improve the understanding, assessment, and maintenance of the natural capital, and the related ecosystem services, in urban-industrial areas. In ecological restoration, the biggest challenge is to find a general consensus of suitable biodiversity indicators and economically viable measures, which will produce multiple socially and ecologically guided environmental benefits. There is difficulty in reaching such consensus because of the complexity, and differing understanding, of the biodiversity concept. In an effort to restore sites disturbed by industrial (mining) activities, restoration projects should involve ecologically based methods and approaches, which will be able to fulfill many stakeholders’ expectations for sustainable development and human well-being. The integrated natural and human models for sustainable management can used to understand the dynamics of ecosystems, including biodiversity and trophic levels (including mid-trophic consumer influences), in order to simulate and evaluate different management scenarios in relation to biodiversity and ecosystem services. There is still a need for the increasing understanding of the role of biodiversity and ecosystem service identification as important factors influencing the dynamics of ecosystem and sustainable management scenarios

Plant Reproductive Ecology

Plant reproductive ecology has emerged as an indispensable discipline for enhancing crop productivity and conserving biodiversity. The adaptive significance of variation in traits associated with floral biology, pollination, seed dispersal, and seedling establishment is an integral component of plant reproductive ecology and evolutionary biology. This book explores the diversity of flower symmetry and the evolutionary patterns of internal structures of generative organs in angiosperms. The rapidly emerging global crisis of declining pollinators poses a major threat to food security. As such, the book also covers the diversity of plant-pollinator interactions, the impact of non-native exotic plant communities on native plants and pollinators, and strategies for the restoration of pollinator communities

Ancient relicts in the limelight :an evolutionary study of diversity and demographic history in species of the broad-leaved temperate forest tree genus Tilia

PhD ThesisTilia L. is a temperate-forest tree genus with a wide northern hemisphere distribution. Several species within the genus are affected by forest fragmentation. Three species were the focus of this study, T. cordata Mill. (small-leaved lime) and T. platyphyllos Scop. (large-leaved lime) from the UK, Austria, Poland, and western Siberia and T. sibirica Bayer (Siberian lime) from southern Siberia. Tilia specific microsatellite markers were used to assess various population genetics indices. Genetic diversity and structure of UK T. cordata and T. platyphyllos populations were estimated. To determine the genetic and demographic history of T. sibirica and T. cordata, Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) analyses were used. An investigation into the clonal architecture of the three species was carried out to assess the level of clonality and the impact of clonal reproduction on genetic diversity. In addition, Next Generation Sequencing of the Tilia leaf transcriptome was carried out using direct RNA sequencing Results confirm that the three species are diploid and outcrossing. Although hybridisation occurs among T. cordata and T. platyphyllos, the two are distinct biological units with high genetic diversity and intra-specific population structure. Significant genetic differentiation was observed between T. sibirica and T. cordata and low genetic diversity in the Siberian lime was revealed. ABC analysis suggests a relatively recent (Early Holocene) divergence between the Siberian lime and the small-leaved lime. The Holocene split coincided with a westerly migration of Tilia genotypes that may have contributed to the recolonization of T. cordata in Europe. Fewer clones were observed in T. platyphyllos than the other two species and range-edge populations experience greater clonality than central European populations. Clonal occurrence does not appear to have had a negative effect on genetic diversity. A method for the de novo assembly and annotation of the leaf transcriptome from T. cordata and T. platyphyllos is provided. Potentially thousands of simple sequence repeats (SSRs) from each species have been identified.RB Cooke Studentship from Newcastle Un

Pollination ecology of Australian sexually deceptive orchids with contrasting patterns of pollinator exploitation

Sexual deception, entailing the pollination of flowers through mimicry of female insects, is one of the most remarkable pollination strategies to have evolved. This thesis explores two Australian sexually deceptive orchid systems with contrasting patterns of pollinator exploitation. The first three chapters focus on the genus Cryptostylis, a system with a unique case of pollinator sharing - five Australian species, four of which are largely sympatric, all deceive the same male ichneumonid pollinator. In Chapter One, mark-recapture experiments were used to investigate the consequences of ichneumonid pollination on pollen movement in C. ovata. A high pollinator revisitation rate indicated some potential for self-pollination. In Chapter Two, reproductive barriers contributing to the absence of hybrids between Cryptostylis species were investigated. Pre-pollination barriers, assessed in field experiments, did not prevent hybridisation. Hand cross-pollinations conducted among the four common Cryptostylis species in a greenhouse all produced fruits, however seed mass and the percentage of formed embryos were reduced in hybrids. Major differences in ploidy and chromosome number likely explain this post-pollination fitness reduction. Two Cryptostylis species were found to be self-incompatible, marking the first case of self-incompatibility in the Diurideae. The unique reproductive biology of Australian Cryptostylis, encompassing pollinator sharing, self-incompatibility, and post-pollination reproductive isolation driven by large ploidy differences, may indicate that its mode of diversification may differ greatly to those in other sexually deceptive genera. Chapter Three presents the first phylogeny to encompass both Australian and Asiatic Cryptostylis. An Australian origin of Cryptostylis is supported, with a likely single dispersal event to Asia. Ploidy variation and geographic barriers appear to have played a role in diversification across Cryptostylis. In Chapter Four, the potential presence of pollination ecotypes in Drakaea livida was tested for. Patterns of chemical diversity and pollinator availability across the distribution of the species are investigated. Pollinator choice trials revealed the presence of three discrete ecotypes each attracting its own pollinator species. Patterns of pollinator availability did not correlate with ecotype distribution. Each ecotype possessed a significantly different floral volatile composition. Using Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA), the presence-absence of a subset of taxonomically informative compounds could be used to accurately predict the ecotype of a flower. Different classes of electrophysiologically active compounds were present in different ecotypes. These marked differences in chemical composition between the ecotypes suggest either a long time since their divergence and may hint at a scenario of convergent evolution of floral morphology. In Chapter Five, the ecotype geographic ranges and methods of identifying the ecotypes were investigated. Species distribution modelling predicted each ecotype to have a different core range. Two ecotypes were widespread, while one had a limited distribution within extensively cleared agricultural land, raising conservation concerns. PLS-DA correctly identified the ecotype of a flower when labella extracts were made from pollinated flowers, thereby providing a non-destructive identification technique. The pollinator specificity, morphology, floral chemistry, and ranges of the ecotypes supported them as Evolutionary Significant Units. In conclusion, the ecological and evolutionary consequences of pollination by sexual deception may vary extensively between plant taxa in accordance with their different patterns of pollinator exploitation. The taxonomy, species richness of the pollinator group, and the plant species to pollinator species ratio all influence the evolution and diversification of sexually deceptive orchids

The establishment and spread of alien plant species (Kenophytes) in the flora of Poland

Tematyka niniejszej pracy mieści się w problematyce dotyczącej synantropizacji szaty roślinnej. Jednym z przejawów tego ukierunkowanego procesu przemian zachodzących w wyniku różnych form działalności człowieka na kuli ziemskiej są procesy wymierania jednych gatunków i rozprzestrzeniania się innych, nasilające się w ostatnich stuleciach i przyczyniające się do zmian różnorodności biologicznej w skali regionów, krajów i kontynentów. Celem niniejszej monografii było ukazanie badań nad kształtowaniem się flor nowszych przybyszów synantropijnych zadomowionych na obszarze Polski (kenofitów) oraz synteza dotychczasowej wiedzy w tym zakresie. Moim zamysłem było także ukazanie historii i kierunków badań nad tą grupą roślin obcego pochodzenia, wraz z przytoczeniem najistotniejszych opracowań i zagadnień specjalnych podejmowanych przez polskich botaników, które na trwałe wpisane zostały w dorobek nauk biogeograficznych (rozdz. 2; tab. 1). Wynikiem podjętych studiów jest opracowanie nowego, uzupełnionego w stosunku do literatury, wykazu dla tej grupy gatunków, poszerzonego o ich charakterystykę ekologiczno-geograficzną (załączniki A i B oraz rozdz. 5.1 i 8). Dotarcie do źródeł historycznych (historyczne/„stare” flory, dokumentacja zielnikowa) umożliwiło zweryfikowanie lub ustalenie pierwszych dat florystycznych (znalezisk) dla poszczególnych gatunków polskich kenofitów (zał. A i B; także rozdz. 5.2, 7 i 9). Podjęto również próbę odtworzenia okresów kulminacji napływu i rozprzestrzeniania się kenofitów, z ukazaniem zależności od czynników historycznych i geograficznych (rozdz. 5.2 i 9). Dla wyselekcjonowanej grupy 25 gatunków odtworzono dzieje ich rozprzestrzeniania się na obszarze kraju (rozdz. 7). Na podstawie zebranych szczegółowych danych o rozmieszczeniu dla 174 gatunków kenofitów przedstawiono typologię ich zasięgów w granicach Polski (rozdz. 6), a także zweryfikowano hipotezy odnoszące się do głównych czynników wpływających na ich kształtowanie się (rozdz. 10). Mapy rozmieszczenia dla wielu gatunków zostały uzupełnione (rozdz. 7); opracowano ponadto 5 nowych map (rys. 39 w rozdz. 7 oraz zał. C). Dokonano próby rekonstrukcji historycznych zmian zasięgów kenofitów wraz ze wskazaniem możliwych dróg ich migracji (rozdz. 9). Omówiono ponadto tendencje dynamiczne kenofitów z uwzględnieniem czynników sprzyjających opanowywaniu różnych typów siedlisk (rozdz. 11). Z listy kenofitów wyłoniono tzw. gatunki inwazyjne (propozycja listy inwazyjnych kenofitów dla kraju), jednocześnie inicjując dyskusję nad przyjętymi kryteriami ich selekcji, a także wskazano rejony kraju zagrożone inwazją (rozdz. 12)