Dataset Information

The rediscovery of Passiflora kwangtungensis Merr. (subgenus Decaloba supersection Disemma): a critically endangered Chinese endemic.

ABSTRACT: Passiflora kwangtungensis is a critically endangered Chinese species known from Guangxi, Guangdong, and Jiangxi Provinces. The species belongs to Passiflora subgenus Decaloba, supersection Disemma, section Octandranthus. Field observations decreased rapidly during the 1970s to 1980s, and it was suspected that this species might have been extirpated due to repeated deforestation events throughout southern China. In recent years, however, small isolated populations of this species have been rediscovered in Hunan Province, representing new locality records for Passiflora kwangtungensis. New herbarium collections, color photographs, and silica gel collections have provided an unexpected opportunity to examine the evolutionary significance of this species. The current study presents a revised morphological description of Passiflora kwangtungensis based on fresh material, along with an updated distribution map. Using nrITS sequence data, preliminary insights into the phylogenetic position of Passiflora kwangtungensis are presented. Molecular data support the placement of Passiflora kwangtungensis within supersection Disemma section Octandranthus. However, the exact placement of Passiflora kwangtungensis within this lineage is unclear. The nrITS data suggest that Passiflora kwangtungensis may be sister to a clade containing Passiflora from China, Nepal, India, and Southeast Asia. Morphologically, Passiflora kwangtungensis displays the most similarity Passiflora geminiflora (Nepal, India) and Passiflora henryi (China). Lastly, conservation status and recommendations are made for Passiflora kwangtungensis following the IUCN Red List Criteria, where this species is classified as CR C1+C2a(i); D.

SUBMITTER: Krosnick SE

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3690916 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:BackgroundA third of all known freshwater mollusk extinctions worldwide have occurred within a single medium-sized American drainage. The Mobile River Basin (MRB) of Alabama, a global hotspot of temperate freshwater biodiversity, was intensively industrialized during the 20(th) century, driving 47 of its 139 endemic mollusk species to extinction. These include the ancylinid limpet Rhodacmea filosa, currently classified as extinct (IUCN Red List), a member of a critically endangered southeastern North American genus reduced to a single known extant population (of R. elatior) in the MRB.Methodology/principal findingsWe document here the tripling of known extant populations of this North American limpet genus with the rediscovery of enduring Rhodacmea filosa in a MRB tributary and of R. elatior in its type locality: the Green River, Kentucky, an Ohio River Basin (ORB) tributary. Rhodacmea species are diagnosed using untested conchological traits and we reassessed their systematic and conservation status across both basins using morphometric and genetic characters. Our data corroborated the taxonomic validity of Rhodacmea filosa and we inferred a within-MRB cladogenic origin from a common ancestor bearing the R. elatior shell phenotype. The geographically-isolated MRB and ORB R. elatior populations formed a cryptic species complex: although overlapping morphometrically, they exhibited a pronounced phylogenetic disjunction that greatly exceeded that of within-MRB R. elatior and R. filosa sister species.Conclusions/significanceRhodacmea filosa, the type species of the genus, is not extinct. It persists in a Coosa River tributary and morphometric and phylogenetic analyses confirm its taxonomic validity. All three surviving populations of the genus Rhodacmea merit specific status. They collectively contain all known survivors of a phylogenetically highly distinctive North American endemic genus and therefore represent a concentrated fraction of continental freshwater gastropod biodiversity. We recommend the establishment of a proactive targeted conservation program that may include their captive propagation and reintroduction.

Dataset Information

The rediscovery of Passiflora kwangtungensis Merr. (subgenus Decaloba supersection Disemma): a critically endangered Chinese endemic.

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