Herbaria as useful spore banks for integrated conservation strategies of pteridophytic diversity

Abstract

Ex situ approaches represent important conservation tools to increase the chances of many ferns survival, as they are very sensitive to environmental disturbances. This work presents the first results of in vitro reproduction of Dryopteris tyrrhena, an endangered western Mediterranean endemism with a highly fragmented distribution area, using spores taken from exsiccata. Our results highlight the value of herbarium specimens in pteridophyte conservation, providing a useful method to reproduce species that are threatened or extinct in the wild, at least at a local level, and to plan eventual reintroductions using the native germplasm.

Keywords:

• Dryopteris tyrrhena
• ex situ conservation
• reproduction from exsiccata