A comprehensive evaluation of flowering plant diversity and conservation priority for national park planning in China

Establishment of a national park protection system in China,including the latest target proposed to protect at least 30%of the land area,calls for a comprehensive exploration of conservation priorities incorporating multiple diversity facets.We herein evaluate the spatial distribution of Chinese flowering plants from the perspectives of richness,uniqueness,vulnerability,and evolutionary history,by integrating three mega-phylogenies and comprehensive distribution data.We detect significantly high consistency among hotspots of different diversity measures for Chinese flowering plants,suggesting that multiple facets of evolutionary diversity are concentrically distributed in China.Affording legal protection to these areas is expected to maximize positive conservation outcomes.We propose two integrative diversity indices by incorporating three richness-based and three phylogeny-based measures,respectively.Both methods identify areas with high species richness,but the integrative phylogeny-based index also locates key areas with ancient and unique evolutionary histories(e.g.,Ailao-Wuliang Mts,Dabie Mts,Hainan rainforest,Karst area of Yunnan-Guizhou-Guangxi,Nanling Mts,and southeast coastal regions).Of all the diversity indices explored,phylogenetic endemism maximizes the incidental protection of other indices in most cases,emphasizing its significance for conservation planning.Finally,42 priority areas are identified by combining the 5%-criterion hotspots of two integrative indices and the minimum area to protect all threatened species analyzed.These priorities cover only 13.3%of China's land area,but host 97.1%of species richness(23,394/24,095),96.5%of endemic species(11,841/12,274),100%of threatened species(2,613/2,613),and 99.3%of phylogenetic diversity for flowering plants involved in this study.These frameworks provide a solid scientific basis for national park planning in China.

One stop shop:backbones trees for important phytopathogenic genera:Ⅰ(2014)

Many fungi are pathogenic on plants and cause significant damage in agriculture and forestry.They are also part of the natural ecosystem and may play a role in regulating plant numbers/density.Morphological identification and analysis of plant pathogenic fungi,while important,is often hampered by the scarcity of discriminatory taxonomic characters and the endophytic or inconspicuous nature of these fungi.Molecular(DNA sequence)data for plant pathogenic fungi have emerged as key information for diagnostic and classification studies,although hampered in part by non-standard laboratory practices and analytical methods.To facilitate current and future research,this study provides phylogenetic synopses for 25 groups of plant pathogenic fungi in the Ascomycota,Basidiomycota,Mucormycotina(Fungi),and Oomycota,using recent molecular data,up-to-date names,and the latest taxonomic insights.Lineagespecific laboratory protocols together with advice on their application,as well as general observations,are also provided.We hope to maintain updated backbone trees of these fungal lineages over time and to publish them jointly as new data emerge.Researchers of plant pathogenic fungi not covered by the present study are invited to join this future effort.Bipolaris,Botryosphaeriaceae,Botryosphaeria,Botrytis,Choanephora,Colletotrichum,Curvularia,Diaporthe,Diplodia,Dothiorella,Fusarium,Gilbertella,Lasiodiplodia,Mucor,Neofusicoccum,Pestalotiopsis,Phyllosticta,Phytophthora,Puccinia,Pyrenophora,Pythium,Rhizopus,Stagonosporopsis,Ustilago and Verticillium are dealt with in this paper.

Six novel species of Fusarium from natural ecosystems in Australia

Six new species of Fusarium associated with soil and plant hosts from ecosystems of minimal anthropogenic disturbance in Australia are described.Fusarium coicis from Coix gasteenii,F.goolgardi from Xanthorrhoea glauca,F.mundagurra from soil and Mangifera indica,F.newnesense from soil,F.tjaetaba from Sorghum interjectum and F.tjaynera from soil,Triodia microstachya,Sorghum interjectum and Sorghum intrans.Morphology and phylogenetic analysis of EF-1α,RPB1 and RPB2 sequence data were used to delineate species boundaries.The new species were phylogenetically distributed in the Fusarium sambucinum,F.fujikuroi,and F.chlamydosporum species complexes,and two novel species complexes.These six new species have particular phylogeographic significance as not only do they provide further insight into the geographic patterns of Fusarium evolution but also challenge current phylogeographic hypotheses.