Create your own conference schedule! Click here for full instructions

The Virtual Conference is located at https://botany2021.pathable.co/.

Abstract Detail



Mechanisms underlying exceptional plant diversity across eastern Asia

Wen, Jun [1], Nie, Zelong [2], Ma, Zhiyao [3], Lu, Liming [4], Liu, Jing [5], Li, Rong [6], Zuo, Yunjuan [7], Liu, Bin-Bin [8], Harris, AJ [9], Su, Chun [10], Duangjai, Lei [11], Mu, Xianyun [12], Xie, Lei [12], Ren, Chen [11], Chen, Zhiduan [8].

Evolution of diversity in the flora of China: A floristic overview and biogeographic perspectives on mechanisms of diversification.

A major characteristic of the flora of China is that it is extremely diverse, with c. 31,500 species of vascular plants. By comparison, North America (the USA and Canada) covers a larger land area than China, and harbors c. 20,000 species of vascular plants, while Europe (including the species-rich Mediterranean region) contains c. 20-25,000 species. In this presentation, we provide a floristic overview of the mechanisms underlying the evolution of plant diversity in China. We especially focus on several exemplar regions of China and biogeographic case studies on eastern Asian Vitaceae, Panax of Araliaceae, subtribe Tussilagininae of Asteraceae, Astragalus of Fabaceae, and Clematis of Ranunculaceae. This overview and the case studies showcase the importance of high topographic heterogeneity yielding diverse habitats, geographic continuity between the tropical southeastern Asia and South Asia, numerous glacial refugia in the mountainous regions, and very active speciation during the Neogene and Quaternary associated with uplift of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, including its effects on the Asian monsoon, as well as hybridization associated with polyploidy. For example, changes in the Asian monsoon in the Pliocene and glacial oscillations likely drove diversifications of Clematis and Astragalus in dry areas in northwestern China and adjacent Central Asia. The flora of China (and eastern Asia broadly) has also been enriched through its well-known close floristic connections with North America throughout the last 65 million years via transient land bridges. Elucidating the origins and mechanisms of the rich diversity of the Chinese flora is still at its infancy and will require the exploration into the biotic and abiotic mechanisms using new integrative and cutting-edge multi-dimensional approaches, as well as continued close international collaborations to inspire comparative analyses across major biomes in the broader context of the Northern Hemisphere.


Log in to add this item to your schedule

1 - Botany, MRC-166 National Museum Of Natural History, 10th St. & Constitution Ave., NW, Mrc 166, Washington/DC, 20013, United States
2 - Jishou University, College of Biological Resources and Environmental Sciences, Jishou, Hunan, 416000, China
3 - Smithsonian Institution, Department of Botany, National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, 20013-7012, United States
4 - 20 Nanxincun, Xiangshan, Beijing, 11, 100093, China
5 - Sichuan Agricultural University, College of Life Science, Chengdu, Sichuan, 625014, China
6 - Kunming Institute of Botany, Key Laboratory for Plant Diversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming, Yunnan, 650201, China
7 - Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Menglun, Yunnan, 666303, China
8 - Institute of Botany, State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, China
9 - South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy Of Sciences, Key Laboratory of Plant Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization, Xingke Road 723, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, Gungdong, 510650, China
10 - Northwest A&F University, College of Life Science, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China
11 - South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510650, China
12 - Beijing Forestry University, College of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing, 100083, China

Keywords:
eastern Asia
Flora
Plant diversity
mechanisms
biogeography
Floristics.

Presentation Type: Colloquium Presentations
Session: C04, Mechanisms underlying exceptional plant diversity across eastern Asia
Location: /
Date: Tuesday, July 20th, 2021
Time: 1:00 PM(EDT)
Number: C04011
Abstract ID:967
Candidate for Awards:None


Copyright © 2000-2021, Botanical Society of America. All rights reserved

aws4