ibclogo XVI International Botanical Congess

Abstract Number: 3685
Session = 8.4.7


GENETIC VARIATION WITHIN AND AMONG POPULATIONS OF THE THREATENED LICHEN LOBARIA PULMONARIA IN SWITZERLAND: IMPLICATIONS FOR ITS CONSERVATION


Stefan Zoller*, François Lutzoni# and Christoph Scheidegger** Swiss Fed. Inst. for Forest, Snow and Landscape Res., CH-8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland, #The Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, USA


The epiphytic lichen Lobaria pulmonaria has suffered a significant decline in Europe. We investigated the genetic diversity in six populations. Variability was found only in the nuclear ribosomal large subunit (nrLSU) and in the ITS I. We sequenced these two regions for 91 specimens and detected six genotypes. No correlation was found between population size and genetic diversity. The highest genetic diversity was found in populations repro-ducing sexually. Our study provides evidence suggesting that L. pulmonaria is self-incompatible and hetero-thallic. We give populations with sexually reproducing individuals a higher rank in terms of conservation priority.

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