Insights from a century of data reveal global trends in ex situ living plant collections.

Ex situ living plant collections play a crucial role in providing nature-based solutions to twenty-first century global challenges. However, the complex dynamics of these artificial ecosystems are poorly quantified and understood, affecting biodiversity storage, conservation and utilization. To evaluate the management of ex situ plant diversity, we analysed a century of data comprising 2.

Predicting geographic distribution and habitat suitability of in paleoclimatic, current, and future scenarios in Mexico.

Mexican territory is one of the centers of origin and dispersion of the genus , where several of its species have been an important plant resource for people in arid and semiarid zones. is widely distributed in Mexico; however, precise aspects of its geographic distribution and ecological status are still unknown. Here, we modeled its potential distribution under paleoclimatic, current, and future conditions through maximum entropy and predictions from 824 records and seven environmental variables.

New World Cactaceae Plants Harbor Diverse Geminiviruses.

The family Cactaceae comprises a diverse group of typically succulent plants that are native to the American continent but have been introduced to nearly all other continents, predominantly for ornamental purposes. Despite their economic, cultural, and ecological importance, very little research has been conducted on the viral community that infects them. We previously identified a highly divergent geminivirus that is the first known to infect cacti.

A Novel Divergent Geminivirus Identified in Asymptomatic New World Cactaceae Plants.

Cactaceae comprise a diverse and iconic group of flowering plants which are almost exclusively indigenous to the New World. The wide variety of growth forms found amongst the cacti have led to the trafficking of many species throughout the world as ornamentals. Despite the evolution and physiological properties of these plants having been extensively studied, little research has focused on cactus-associated viral communities.

Stable isotope physiology of stem succulents across a broad range of volume-to-surface area ratio.

Volume-to-surface area ratio (V:S) across stem succulent taxa varies by almost two orders of magnitude. The broad range in V:S of cacti and other succulent species likely has considerable importance for adaptation since stem volume determines the storage capacity of water, carbon and nutrients and stem surface area is directly related to whole-stem photosynthetic capacity. We examined the intrinsic physiological tradeoffs across diverse stem morphologies in three divergent evolutionary groups where stem succulence is common: Cactoideae, Opuntioideae (Cactaceae) and Euphorbiaceae.

High proportion of cactus species threatened with extinction.

A high proportion of plant species is predicted to be threatened with extinction in the near future. However, the threat status of only a small number has been evaluated compared with key animal groups, rendering the magnitude and nature of the risks plants face unclear. Here we report the results of a global species assessment for the largest plant taxon evaluated to date under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List Categories and Criteria, the iconic Cactaceae (cacti).