UC collaborates on new measure of biodiversity
Claudia Doman
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º£½ÇÉäÇø bio-geographer Dr Carlos González-Orozco is one of the co-authors of the paper on a new method to measure biodiversity. Photo supplied |
21 July 2014: An international group of researchers has developed a new method to measure biodiversity using family trees that will help pinpoint areas that might need to be prioritised for conservation.
In a paper published on Friday in the prestigious journal Nature Communications, a team of US and Australian researchers explains how by using phylogenetic analysis – which looks at the genetic connections and relationships between species – they were able to look at biodiversity at a deeper level.
º£½ÇÉäÇø bio-geographer and co-author of this paper, Carlos E. González-Orozco, said that this new method looks not at a single species but rather at the diversity among species and the evolutionary uniqueness of their geographic location, also known as endemism.
By using numerous computer simulations of huge digitised datasets of the distribution of acacia species, better known as wattle, the team was able to find the major centres of genetic diversity of the plant, locate the places where newer species have grown and where older species have taken refuge.
Dr González-Orozco, a researcher at the º£½ÇÉäÇø's Institute for Applied Ecology and the Murray-Darling Basin Futures Collaborative Research Network, explained that the team applied its new method to a family pedigree with 500 species of wattles.
"The standard measure of biodiversity is counting the number of species in one area, but in this case, we looked at the relationships among the relatives of the acacia, and managed to identify new hotspots of phylogenetic diversity for wattles across Australia," he said. "This information could then be used to locate areas in which the family pedigrees are endemic and in potential need of preservation.
"It is critical that we understand not only the distribution patterns of the diversity of plants and animals in the planet, but also their evolutionary history and their relationship with other relatives so we can better plan conservation strategies, in the face of rapid habitat loss due to human-induced climate change."
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The researchers used data on Australian acacia trees, commonly known as wattles, to test their method. Photo: Claudia Doman |
The paper Phylogenetic measures of biodiversity and neo- and paleo-endemism in Australian Acacia was led by University of California, Berkeley biologist Brent D. Mishler and co-authored by Dr González-Orozco and other Australian scientists from CSIRO, James Cook University and the University of New South Wales.
The method, called categorical analysis of neo-and paleo-endemism (CANAPE), took advantage of Australia's plant database, one of the most comprehensive in the world.
"The novelty of our method is that we were able to pinpoint which areas of Australia have ancient or paleo-endemic species – the museums of the acacias –- and which areas have new, recently evolved or neo-endemic species which act as nurseries of biodiversity," he said.
Dr González-Orozco said the team has also started to apply this method to other regional areas in Australia.
"We have applied this method in the Murray-Darling Basin, where we are now looking at a series of not only plant species, but animal species as well. This way we will be able to inform local agencies where to look for unique biodiversity and therefore achieve a more targeted conservation of natural resources," Dr González-Orozco said.
"We are aware that we can't save everything, so we need to prioritise our conservation efforts and this tool will let us identify which sections of the tree of life we need to protect."