Integration of Conservation Strategies of Plant Genetic ... - Genres

- the Genebank keeps, in the first place, such information on plant genetic resources within its
mandate which is necessary for taking this responsibility.
3.2 Species to be considered for in situ conservation
Species endemic and indigenous in the country(ies) and within the mandate of the Genebank can be
recommended to be entirely or partly conserved in situ in the following cases:
A. The species comprise cultivated as well as wild growing forms in the area of Genebank
responsibility:
I. the species is difficult or expensive to manage;
II. the species is very widely distributed in the area of Genebank responsibility;
III. the species is endangered.
B. The species comprise only wild forms in the area of Genebank responsibility but is cultivated
somewhere else.
C. The species is nowhere cultivated (wild relative of cultivated species).
Arguments for conserving material as presented above in situ are:
A.I. To conserve perennial species such as Prunus, Rosa, etc, as ex situ, in clone archives or
similar, is often too costly. Accessions of seeds from various populations can, however,
be conserved ex situ, in cases where the storage of seed fit into the standard used at the
Genebank.
A.II. Many important herbage plants are often included in this cathegory. Such a conservation
approach may provide a less expensive protection than ex situ, particularly as extensive
collecting and multiplication is a heavy burden. Only for material used for research and plant
breeding programmes, or when an important species is threatened, ex situ conservation should
be considered justifiable.
A. III. The material will become extinct if measures are not taken.
B. By international undertakings, such as the CBD and the FAOs Undertaking for the
conservation of genetic resources, the Genebank may be tied to the international network
of gene banks. However, collecting, conserving and multiplying even species of little or
no interest for the country(ies) for which the Genebank has responsibility may be too
costly to manage. To meet the demand from other parts of the network, these species can
be conserved in situ.
C. Wild species (including wild forms of cultivated species) with a functional mechanism of
seed dispersal are in general more complicated to handle ex situ, than cultivated plants.
Therefore in situ conservation, being less costly, can be recommended for wild species.