Diversity and Conservation Gap Analysis of the Solanaceae of Southern South America

Abstract

There is a need to make substantial advances in the taxonomic, systematic, and distribution knowledge of plants, and find better ways of transmission of this information to society to surpass the general pattern described as “plant blindness.” The diversity of the plant family Solanaceae reaches its peak in South America; however, many of its species are threatened due to the expansion of the human footprint. Here, we examine the diversity patterns of the family in southern South America (Argentina and Chile) by means of species richness (SR), weighted endemism (WE), and corrected weighted endemism (CWE). We also evaluated conservation gaps in relation to protected areas and the human footprint as a proxy for potential impacts on this biodiversity. Results show two richness centers in NW and NE Argentina, with a high degree of overlap with protected areas, which, on the other side, show a relative high index of human footprint. Comparatively, coastal Atacama (Chile) shows lower richness values, but outstanding CWE and WE values. The coast of Atacama harbors high values due the presence of species of the genus Nolana with restricted distributions. Protected areas in this tight coastal strip are sparse, and the human footprint is also relatively high. The degree of protection based on these parameters is then unbalanced, highlighting the need for a geographically explicit strategy for the conservation of the family at subcontinental scale. In doing so, it is likely that other representatives of these unique centers of richness and endemism will benefit.

Chilean Darwin Wasps (Ichneumonidae): Biogeographic Relationships and Distribution Patterns

“…In the case of Ichneumonidae, even if the Linnean and Wallacean shortfalls are better filled in the coming years, the richness pattern will continue to have a bimodal distribution and be concentrated at mid-latitudes due to the presence of the Atacama Desert, which constitutes a physical barrier for the diversification of life. This fact does not imply a merely barren environment, but an evolutionary arena favoring several groups such as Cactaceae [ 11 ] (p. 202) and Nolaneae [ 46 ] in the case of plant groups adapted to aridity.…”

Species diversity, hotspot congruence, and conservation of North American damselflies (Odonata: Zygoptera)

“…To effectively protect species diversity, conservationists focused on identifying priority areas for conservation (Tang et al, 2006;Zhang et al, 2015b;Huang et al, 2016;Hu et al, 2017;Xie et al, 2021;Xia et al, 2022). Species diversity is measured using several metrics, with species richness and endemism being the most commonly used metrics for developing conservation strategies (Zizka et al, 2019;Noroozi et al, 2019a;Xie et al, 2021;Moreira-Munoz et al, 2022;Qin et al, 2022). The spatial congruence of species richness and endemism hotspots is the basis for identifying priority areas for conservation (Orme et al, 2005) but is rarely evaluated in insects.…”

Comparing species and evolutionary diversity metrics to inform conservation

“…Mapping tools for spatial prioritizations based on PD metrics are relevant to identifying key areas of importance for conservation (Laffan et al, 2010). In the last 10 years, there has been more focus on spatial prioritizations across different fields because of its benefits for conservation and biodiversity (Carter et al, 2022; Moreira‐Muñoz et al, 2022; Thornhill et al, 2016; Tolley et al, 2016). For instance, in an Australian case study, Laity et al (2015) mapped the PD hotspots of plants and frogs regions of biodiversity located in southwest Western Australia and the Wet Tropics.…”