2013 Research Highlights
Genetics Matter: Forest Tree Species at Risk
Research assists in management and conservation decision making
Many forest tree species and populations face serious threats to their long-term viability, most seriously from insect and disease infestation and from the effects of climate change. To conserve the genetic foundation tree species need to survive and adapt in the face of these threats, forest management decisions must consider how genetic diversity is distributed across species’ ranges. An Eastern Forest Environmental Threat Assessment Center cooperating scientist from North Carolina State University (NCSU) is the lead analyst for two range-wide genetic variation studies of species with large distributions: eastern hemlock, which is being decimated by an exotic insect, and ponderosa pine, a species with isolated populations of special concern given their susceptibility to climate change, development, and bark beetles.
Results from both studies are already influencing management decisions. A study published in the American Journal of Botany for the first time uncovers evolutionary groups within ponderosa pine that may have different responses to climate change, bark beetles, and other threats. The Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service’s National Forest System are utilizing these results for management and conservation activities in the western United States. Characterization of the genetic diversity and structure of the eastern hemlock species, published in the journal Conservation Genetics, is guiding NSCU-based Camcore conservation cooperative’s seed collections from genetically significant eastern hemlock populations.
Right: Standing dead hemlock trees in a riparian forest
Forest Service Partners/Collaborators: Forest Health Protection; National Forest System; Southern Research Station (Southern Institute of Forest Genetics)
External Partners/Collaborators: North Carolina State University (NCSU); Bureau of Land Management
Contact: Kevin Potter, (919) 549-4071, NCSU cooperating scientist, kevin.potter@usda.gov
