6533b85efe1ef96bd12c05cf

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Breeding system and conservation strategy of the extremely endangered Cistus carthaginensis Pau (Cistaceae) of Spain

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description

Cistus carthaginensis is one of the most endangered plants in Europe: at present there exist only a few individuals in Murcia and one in Valencia (SE and E Spain). To design an adequate conservation strategy able to avoid the extinction of this species, various aspects of its reproductive biology were studied. The extreme rarity of C. carthaginensis is not related to problems of development and/or fertility of pollen or ovules produced by the few existing specimens. Meiosis in the pollen mother cells is always regular and chromosome segregation is completely equilibrated in the male gametes. Pollen and ovule production is high and similar to that reported for other related species of Cistus. Pollen grains have high viability and germination rates, and the ovules are well-developed and functional. However, hand pollination treatments and microscopic observation of pollen tube growth along the style revealed that the species, like many others of this genus, shows gametophytic self-incompatibility. The isola...