DNA Barcoding to Enhance Conservation of Sunshine Coast Heathlands

Hilary Pearl; Tim Ryan; Marion Howard; Yoko Shimizu; Alison Shapcott

doi:10.3390/d14060436

Back

DNA Barcoding to Enhance Conservation of Sunshine Coast Heathlands

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

DNA Barcoding to Enhance Conservation of Sunshine Coast Heathlands

Hilary Pearl, Tim Ryan, Marion Howard, Yoko Shimizu and Alison Shapcott

Diversity, Vol.14(6), pp.1-20

2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/d14060436

Files and links (2)

pdf

DNA Barcoding to Enhance Conservation of Sunshine Coast Heathlands1.53 MBDownload View

Published VersionCC BY V4.0, Open Access

url

https://doi.org/10.3390/d14060436View

Published Version

Abstract

heathlands

phylogenetic diversity

barcoding

phylogeny

conservation

refugia

Conservation priorities and decisions can be informed by understanding diversity patterns and the evolutionary history of ecosystems, and phylogenetic metrics can contribute to this. This project used a range of diversity metrics in concert to examine diversity patterns in the Sunshine Coast heathlands, an ecosystem under intense pressure. The species richness and composition of 80 heathland sites over nine regional ecosystems of heathland on the Sunshine Coast were enhanced with phylogenetic metrics, determined by barcoding 366 heath species of the region. The resulting data were added to an existing phylogeny of regional rainforest species. The diversity metrics for sites and regional ecosystems were compared using univariate and multivariate statistics. The phylogeny from this study, and the low phylogenetic diversity of the heathlands, is consistent with the theory that heath species evolved on the fringes on a wider Australian rainforest flora. Distinctive heathland communities were highlighted, and the existence of geographically scattered, but compositionally similar, phylogenetically even sites points to a possible “refugial environment”, characterised by moisture and instability. This suggests contrasting conservation implications: the protection of distinctive communities but also the management of the dynamic processes in other wet and alluvial “refugial environments”. The potential for more focused conservation priorities is enhanced.

Details

Title: DNA Barcoding to Enhance Conservation of Sunshine Coast Heathlands
Authors: Hilary Pearl (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Tim Ryan (Author)
Marion Howard (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Yoko Shimizu (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science and Engineering - Legacy
Alison Shapcott (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Publication details: Diversity, Vol.14(6), pp.1-20
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date published: 2022
DOI: 10.3390/d14060436
ISSN: 1424-2818
Copyright note: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited
Organisation Unit: School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Centre for Bioinnovation
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99642178502621
Output Type: Journal article