On Chile’s Robinson Crusoe Island, in the South Pacific, a tree juts out precariously from the side of a steep cliff. It’s the last known wild individual of Dendroseris neriifolia. To prevent its total extinction in the wild, conservationists recently collected seeds from the tree and have begun trials to cultivate them.
All 11 species of the genus Dendroseris are exclusive to the Juan Fernández Archipelago off Chile. The trees, with striking yellow, orange or white flowers, have been nearly wiped out by extensive habitat degradation, invasive plants, and damage by introduced mammals such as goats and rodents.
Only one known wild individual of the critically endangered D. neriifolia remains on Robinson Crusoe, one of the three main islands in the archipelago, according to Paulina Hechenleitner, research associate at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, U.K.
This tree, estimated to be around 150 years old, hangs off a remote cliff that “is extremely difficult to access, requiring specialist fieldwork and careful planning to avoid any harm,” she told Mongabay by email.
Every year, local conservationists attempt to collect seeds from the tree’s one-seeded fruits. However, fruiting is irregular and some seasons the fruits produce few or no viable seeds, Hechenleitner said.
This year, conservationists collected about 400 seeds, of which 29 were considered potentially viable and sent to the Millennium Seed Bank (MSB) at Kew, the world’s largest wild plant seed conservation program. There, researchers used X-ray imaging to confirm that 24 seeds showed the presence of embryo development.
These 24 “good seeds” were split into three groups of eight, said Alice Hudson, MSB partnership officer at Kew. “An initial eight were trialled for germination to see if we had the conditions right,” Hudson told Mongabay by email. “Now we know that the methodology works we plan to germinate another 8 of the seeds. The final 8 will be banked at the MSB for long-term conservation.”
The seedlings will be shared with U.K. botanical gardens to refine and improve cultivation and propagation methods under different growing conditions, Hechenleitner said. “Increasing seed production is key to strengthening seed bank collections and generating material that can eventually be repatriated to Chile for habitat restoration. Continued seed collection from the last wild tree, whenever viable crops are produced, will help secure remaining genetic diversity.”
The ultimate goal of the project is to restore wild populations of the tree. But “this will require long-term investment in habitat restoration, invasive species control, monitoring, and carefully planned reintroductions,” Hechenleitner said.
Survival of Dendroseris trees is crucial for species that depend on them, including the critically endangered Juan Fernández firecrown (Sephanoides fernandensis), a hummingbird that forages on nectar produced by the trees’ flowers.
“This genus [Dendroseris] only occurs on the Juan Fernández Islands, if they’re lost that’s a whole group of species gone with unique diversity,” Hudson said.
Banner image of the last known wild individual of Dendroseris neriifolia, courtesy of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
This story first appeared on Mongabay
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