Abstract Detail

Conservation Biology

Pascarella, John B. [1].

Restoration of endangered Baptisia arachnifera (Fabaceae) at an ex-situ site in Georgia.

Baptisia arachnifera is a federally endangered endemic plant, found naturally only in a small area in southeastern Georgia. An ex-situ population was established in the 1990's at the Lake Louise Field Station of Valdosta State University in south Georgia. Seed germination experiments were attempted at the site. Across all treatments (n = 2020 seeds), germination percentage was 27% and survival and growth of germinated seeds was low. In 2004 and 2005, seedlings of two different age cohorts were planted at this site. Transplant survival has been very high for the 2004 cohort of 41 two-year old seedlings (95%) and the 2005 cohort of 189 1-yr old seedlings (78%), including during a period of extreme drought. This is comparable to non-human induced mortality of older adults from the 1990's planting (93%). Seedling growth was rapid, with the 2004 cohort of older seedlings growing faster than the 2005 cohort. Both cohorts began reproducing in their third year of growth, with 93% of the 2004 cohort and 41% of the 2005 cohort flowering at least once from 2004-2012. Future conservation plantings of this species should concentrate on older and larger seedlings grown from field-harvested seeds.

Broader Impacts:

1 - Sam Houston State University, Department of Biological Sciences, 200 Lee Drain Building, Box 2209, Huntsville, TX, 77341, USA

Keywords:
none specified

Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Topics
Session: 20
Location: Marlborough A/Riverside Hilton
Date: Tuesday, July 30th, 2013
Time: 8:45 AM
Number: 20002
Abstract ID:127
Candidate for Awards:None