Abstract

Uebelmannia is a cactus genus represented by three microendemic species with patchy distributions in campo rupestre landscapes in the Espinhaço Range in eastern Brazil. It is one of the ten genera of Cactaceae listed as threatened with extinction due to habitat loss and illegal overcollection. Assessment of the genetic diversity and population structure of this threatened genus is crucial to provide guidelines for both in situ and ex situ conservation and management efforts. Here, we genotyped 12 microsatellite loci from samples covering the entire distribution of this genus (485 individuals from 20 localities) to investigate the genetic diversity, spatial population structure, and demography of Uebelmannia species. The results identified moderate-to-high levels of genetic diversity in Uebelmannia, comparable to the wide-range cacti from Cerrado biome. The results confirmed an extremely high population structure even at small geographic scales, with population clusters exhibiting high inbreeding and genetic signatures of a recent bottleneck. Based on this study, we suggest some conservation strategies, including in situ management for populations at the borders of protected areas and ex situ seed collection, for further management of this genus. Furthermore, the results suggest the use of a precautionary approach for translocation plans and highlight that effective conservation management of Uebelmannia should target genetically clustered populations instead of species or subspecies.

中文翻译：

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坎波·鲁佩斯特雷（Campo rupestre）风景中的仙人掌遗属属中的极端遗传结构：对保护的意义

摘要

Uebelmannia是一种仙人掌属，由三个微特有物种组成，在巴西东部的Espinhaço山脉的Campo rupestre景观中分布不规则。它是仙人掌科的十大属之一，因栖息地丧失和非法过度采集而濒临灭绝。对该濒危物种的遗传多样性和种群结构进行评估对于为原位和非原位保护和管理工作提供指导至关重要。在这里，我们对样本的12个微卫星基因座进行了基因分型，涵盖了该属的整个分布范围（来自20个地方的485个个体），以调查乌贝曼尼亚的遗传多样性，空间种群结构和人口统计学种类。结果确定了乌兰曼尼亚的中高水平遗传多样性，可与塞拉多生物群落的宽范围仙人掌相媲美。结果证实，即使在较小的地理尺度上，种群结构也具有极高的优势，种群集群显示出近亲繁殖和近代瓶颈的遗传特征。在这项研究的基础上，我们提出了一些保护策略，包括对保护区边界的种群进行原地管理和异地种子收集，以进一步管理该属。此外，结果建议对转移计划采用预防措施，并强调有效的乌贝曼尼亚保护管理应针对基因簇聚种群而不是物种或亚种。