Abstract
In hyper fragmented biomes, conservation of extant biota relies on preservation and proper management of remnants. The maintenance of genetic diversity and functional connectivity in a landscape context is probably key to long-term conservation of remnant populations. We measured the genetic diversity in seedlings and adults of tree Copaifera langsdorffii and evaluated whether edge and density-dependent effects drive natural regeneration in a set of very small and degraded Brazilian Atlantic forest fragments. We evaluated the role of small remnants in the conservation of genetic diversity in a hyper fragmented landscape and discuss the challenge of long-term population sustainability of such altered habitats. High genetic diversity in adults indicated these fragments are valuable targets for C. langsdorffii in situ conservation, but both genetic diversity and divergence among patches decreased in seedlings. In our landscape, regeneration increased as it neared edges and adults; suggesting this population is resilient to fragmentation. However, at a broader scale, current levels of gene flow have not been sufficient to prevent the loss of genetic diversity across generations. Restoration plans, even at a small scale, are necessary to promote fragment connectivity and spatially expand opportunities for the fairly restricted gene flow observed in this severely fragmented Brazilian Atlantic forest region.
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Acknowledgments
We thank Ivonir Piotrowski, João Paulo de S. Curti and Thiago P. Telatin for helping in field work, and the owners of Fazenda São Roque, Fazenda Flores, and Ecoresidencial Fazenda Jequitibá for authorizing field work in their farms. We also thank Victoria Sork for her insightful comments on the first versions of this manuscript and Carla Américo for drawing the map. Two anonymous reviewers helped improve the manuscript. We finally thank São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) grant 2012/01274-4 and FAPESP-University of Florida grant 2013/50119-4 for financial support. AFF received scientific initiation scholarships from National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) in 2012 and from FAPESP in 2013 (Grant 2012/20363-8).
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Martins, K., Kimura, R.K., Francisconi, A.F. et al. The role of very small fragments in conserving genetic diversity of a common tree in a hyper fragmented Brazilian Atlantic forest landscape. Conserv Genet 17, 509–520 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-015-0800-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-015-0800-7