Conservationists are in a race against time to prevent one of the world’s rarest island plants from disappearing forever, after seeds collected from the only surviving wild Dendroseris neriifolia tree arrived at the Millennium Seed Bank (MSB) at Kew Wakehurst in Sussex last month.
Endemic to Chile’s remote Juan Fernández Islands, the critically endangered tree daisy has been reduced to a single known wild individual after decades of habitat loss, invasive species and failed recovery efforts. Scientists are turning to ex-situ conservation by beginning emergency germination trials that may represent the species’ last realistic chance of survival, with the hope of growing plants to maturity and securing seeds for long-term conservation.
X-ray analysis on the newly arrived seeds at Kew’s MSB has revealed that 25 of the 29 seeds sent to Kew are potentially viable, highlighting both the rarity of the species and the importance of securing healthy seed material.
To maximize the chances of long-term survival, the seeds have been carefully divided between conservation and propagation efforts. Seven seedlings are now establishing, of which three will soon be sent to LBG, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
Once concentrated in ravines and low-lying areas on Robinson Crusoe Island, D. neriifolia declined dramatically; by 1980, only seven surviving wild individuals remained. As the population continued to decline, the species was identified as a high conservation priority during the 1990s, prompting intensified recovery efforts by CONAF Park Rangers.
Despite reintroduction efforts in the early 2000s, the breakdown of protective measures in 2017 allowed invasive species to enter the site, leaving just one tree in the wild today, and an ex-situ collection established at the National Botanical Garden of Chile failed due to climatic conditions. There is, however, currently one young specimen growing in VerdeNativo botanic gardens.
