Taxonomy based on science is necessary for global conservation

Peer reviewe

Not Just Later, but Fewer: Novel Trends in Cohort Fertility in the Nordic Countries

With historically similar patterns of high and stable cohort fertility and high levels of gender equality, the Nordic countries of Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland are seen as forerunners in demographic behavior. Furthermore, Nordic fertility trends have strongly influenced fertility theories. However, the period fertility decline that started around 2010 in many countries with relatively high fertility is particularly pronounced in the Nordic countries, raising the question of whether Nordic cohort fertility will also decline and deviate from its historically stable pattern. Using harmonized data across the Nordic countries, we comprehensively describe this period decline and analyze the extent to which it is attributable to tempo or quantum effects. Two key results stand out. First, the decline is mostly attributable to first births but can be observed across all ages from 15 to the mid-30s. This is a reversal from the previous trend in which fertility rates in the early 30s increased relatively steadily in those countries in the period 1980–2010. Second, tempo explains only part of the decline. Forecasts indicate that the average Nordic cohort fertility will decline from 2 children for the 1970 cohort to around 1.8 children for the late 1980s cohorts. Finland diverges from the other countries in terms of its lower expected cohort fertility (below 1.6), and Denmark and Sweden diverge from Finland, Iceland, and Norway in terms of their slower cohort fertility decline. These findings suggest that the conceptualization of the Nordic model of high and stable fertility may need to be revised

Inter- and intra-specific diversity of Cuban <i>Pinguicula</i> (Lentibulariaceae) based on morphometric analyses and its relation with geographical distribution

<div><p><b><i>Background:</i></b> Phenotypic variations have been observed in populations of west Cuban <i>Pinguicula</i> species. Such populations occur in patches under different ecological conditions associated with specialised habitats and separated by geographical and ecological barriers, which can lead to morphological differentiation.</p><p><b><i>Aims:</i></b> To analyse morphological diversity among species and populations of Cuban <i>Pinguicula</i>; and to test if morphological variability is associated with geographical distribution and distance between populations.</p><p><b><i>Methods:</i></b> We sampled a total of eight populations of <i>P. albida</i>, <i>P. cubensis</i> and <i>P. filifolia</i> and tested for morphometric differences among them by Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) based on 31 quantitative traits. We also assessed the geographical isolation with respect to morphological distance.</p><p><b><i>Results:</i></b> The studied species showed high morphological variability at both species and population level. Reproductive characteristics appeared to be more promissory than vegetative ones in distinguishing geographical groups since they clearly defined populations; nevertheless a strong component of individual variation was observed. According to the distance analysis, such morphological variations were correlated with fragmented populations and isolation and allowed the differentiation of two morphotypes of <i>P. albida</i> and two of <i>P. filifolia</i>.</p><p><b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> We conclude that high phenotypic variation of the analysed species is related to geographical and ecological isolation which have led to the differentiation of morphotypes within species.</p></div

Identification and frequency of transposable elements in Eucalyptus

Transposable elements (TE) are major components of eukaryotic genomes and involved in cell regulation and organism evolution. We have analyzed 123,889 expressed sequence tags of the Eucalyptus Genome Project database and found 124 sequences representing 76 TE in 9 groups, of which copia, MuDR and FAR1 groups were the most abundant. The low amount of sequences of TE may reflect the high efficiency of repression of these elements, a process that is called TE silencing. Frequency of groups of TE in Eucalyptus libraries which were prepared with different tissues or physiologic conditions from seedlings or adult plants indicated that developing plants experience the expression of a much wider spectrum of TE groups than that seen in adult plants. These are preliminary results that identify the most relevant TE groups involved with Eucalyptus development, which is important for industrial wood production

Brazilian Flora 2020: Leveraging the power of a collaborative scientific network

International audienceThe shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiversity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxonomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world's known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world's most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend beyond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still unequally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the country. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora

Growing knowledge: an overview of Seed Plant diversity in Brazil

Abstract An updated inventory of Brazilian seed plants is presented and offers important insights into the country's biodiversity. This work started in 2010, with the publication of the Plants and Fungi Catalogue, and has been updated since by more than 430 specialists working online. Brazil is home to 32,086 native Angiosperms and 23 native Gymnosperms, showing an increase of 3% in its species richness in relation to 2010. The Amazon Rainforest is the richest Brazilian biome for Gymnosperms, while the Atlantic Rainforest is the richest one for Angiosperms. There was a considerable increment in the number of species and endemism rates for biomes, except for the Amazon that showed a decrease of 2.5% of recorded endemics. However, well over half of Brazillian seed plant species (57.4%) is endemic to this territory. The proportion of life-forms varies among different biomes: trees are more expressive in the Amazon and Atlantic Rainforest biomes while herbs predominate in the Pampa, and lianas are more expressive in the Amazon, Atlantic Rainforest, and Pantanal. This compilation serves not only to quantify Brazilian biodiversity, but also to highlight areas where there information is lacking and to provide a framework for the challenge faced in conserving Brazil's unique and diverse flora