Introducing of plant species through the sowing of crops in the Balearic Islands

S'han analitzat mostres de lots de llavors de cinc espècies de plantes cultivades per a conèixer el problema de la presència de llavors d'espècies no desitjades. S'han identificat llavors de 50 espècies diferents entre les quals destaquen Abutilon theophrasti, Amaranthus spp., Datura stramonium i Cichorium endivia ssp. divaricatum. També s'ha identificat Echinaria capitata, una espècie mediterrània però que no s'ha citat mai a les Illes Balears. Les mostres que pertanyen a lots de llavors no certificats mostren una presència notablement superior de llavors contaminants que els lots certificats, doncs hem trobat fins a un 5,8% de llavors no desitjades i fins a 37 tipus diferents de llavors contaminants en una sola mostra. Però aquest treball demostra que la regulació de certificació de llavors no elimina el problema de la introducció de noves espècies a les Illes. Per això es recomana endurir aquesta regulació tant quantitativament com qualitativa.Lots of commercial seeds of five plant species were analysed to get a better understanding of the problem of the presence of seeds of non desirable species. Fifty different species were identified, amongst them standout: Abutilon theophrasti, Amaranthus spp., Datura stramonium and Cichorium endivia ssp. divaricatum. Also identified was Echinaria capitata, a Mediterranean species that has never been cited in the Balearic Islands. The samples that pertained to non-certified seeds showed a notable higher presence of contaminated seeds than those from the certified lots: the former lots had up to 5.8% of undesirable seeds and up to 37 different types of contaminating seeds in a single sample. However, this communication shows that the regulation of contaminated seeds does not eliminate the introduction of new species to the Islands. For this reason, it is recommended that the regulations should be stiffened both quantitatively as well as qualitatively

Historic exposure to herbivores, not constitutive traits, explains plant tolerance to herbivory in the case of two Medicago species (Fabaceae)

Altres ajuts: Direcció General de Política Universitària i Recerca (Govern de les Illes Balears) FPI/1925/2016Mechanisms that allow plants to survive and reproduce after herbivory are considered to play a key role in plant evolution. In this study, we evaluated how tolerance varies in species with different historic exposure to herbivores considering ontogeny. We exposed the range-restricted species Medicago citrina and its closely related and widespread species M. arborea to one and two herbivory simulations (80 % aerial biomass loss). Physiological and growth parameters related to tolerance capacity were assessed to evaluate constitutive values (without herbivory) and induced tolerance after damage. Constitutive traits were not always related to greater tolerance, and each species compensated for herbivory through different traits. Herbivory damage only led to mortality in M. citrina; adults exhibited root biomass loss and increased oxidative stress after damage, but also compensated aerial biomass. Despite seedlings showed a lower death percentage than adults after herbivory in M. citrina, they showed less capacity to recover control values than adults. Moderate tolerance to M. arborea herbivory and low tolerance to M. citrina is found. Thus, although the constitutive characteristics are maintained in the lineage, the tolerance of plants decreases in M. citrina. That represents how plants respond to the lack of pressure from herbivores in their habitat

Experiences of historical introductions in Majorca: the case of "Ranunculus weyleri" (Ranunculaceae)

Conservation translocations did not begin to be documented until the late decades of the twentieth century in Spain. However, there is evidence that some endemic species were translocated in 1958 in Majorca (Balearic Islands) because the blasting of the highest mountain peak on the island for the installation of an American radar station could have endangered the survival of these endemic species. This is the case for Ranunculus weyleri Marès ex Willk., a threatened plant that consists of a few subpopulations with disjoint distribution. The aim of this study was (i) to search the personal documents of the botanist Jeroni Orell Casasnovas (1924-1995) —delegate of the Societat d’Història Natural de les Balears for the protection of the Puig Major flora before the blasting in 1958— to obtain information about this introduction and (ii) to perform a demographic census of its current conservation status. After the introduction in 1958, monitoring of the translocated plants in the following years 1963 and 1964 confirmed that the establishment was successful; currently, this subpopulation consists of 63 adult plants. Overall, the conservation translocation of R. weyleri sixty years ago was successful. Finally, we underline the utility of field notebook data for historical botanists who gathered valuable information but did not publish it elsewhere and the importance of publishing the results of current translocation actions, whether they succeed or not.<br /

Female and male fitness of a sexually deceptive orchid with a narrow distribution area: from phenotypic traits to spatial distribution patterns

[eng] The Orchidaceae family presents one of the most extravagant pollination mechanisms: deception. While many studies on reproductive success have been performed on food-deception orchids, less have been performed on sexually deceptive orchids. Here, we focused on Ophrys balearica P. Delforge, an endemic orchid of the Balearic Islands, to study its reproductive ecology, the spatio-temporal variation of its reproductive success and the individual (floral display and geospatial position) and population parameters (patch size, shape and density) that affect its reproductive success. We performed hand-pollination experiments, along with the recording of floral display parameters and GPS position of over 1,100 individuals from seven populations in two consecutive years. We applied, for the first time, GIS tools to analyse the effects of individual's position within the population on the reproductive success. Reproductive success was measured both in male (removed pollinia) and female (fruit set) fitness. The results confirm that this species is pollinator-dependent and mostly allogamous, but also self-compatible. This species showed high values for the cumulative inbreeding depression index and high pollen limitation. Male fitness was almost equal to female fitness between years and populations, and reproductive success exhibited huge spatio-temporal variation. Although we did not find strong correlations between floral display and reproductive success, patches with low-plant density and individuals in the external portion of the population showed significantly higher plant fitness. These findings must be considered in conservation actions for endangered orchid species, especially considering that most orchids are strongly dependent on pollinators for their species' fitness