Alpine plant research report
A major report entitled Australian alpine plant research, conservation and management was released on 21 October 2014 at the AGM of the Friends. This report is an important outcome of a joint Australian Research Council research program covering 4 years between the ANBG, ANU, the Friends and the University of Queensland. The project greatly increased the knowledge of alpine plants, which are under increasing pressure from climate change and environmental degradation in the alps. It has also led to the ANBG seed bank becoming the major centre for collection and study of alpine seeds. The report brings together the outcomes of the study as presented at a symposium at ANBG on 12 June 2014.
See the report (PDF, 2.9MB)
The contents include:
- Summary
- Alpine seed and plant ecology in Australian alps
- Engagement of the ANBG Friends with alpine seed ecology
- History of Australian alpine ecology research
- The role of botanic gardens in Australian alpine ex situ conservation, research and restoration
- Australian alpine seed ecology: plant conservation and adaptation to climate change – ARC Linkage Project
- Winter is coming, and Aciphylla glacialis remembers
- Snow, shrub and climate feedbacks: impacts of shrub expansion in the Australian alpine zone
- Elevation gradients in seed and vegetative traits in alpine plant species
- Are Australian alpine seeds short-lived?
- Alpine evolutionary diversity and adaptive potential
- Alpine plant distributions and abundance
- Long-term ecological monitoring and observed vegetation changes in the Victorian Alps
- Plant conservation in the Snowy Mountains in a changing climate
- Research for conservation in Tasmanian alpine environments
- Towards a collaborative approach to adaptive ecological restoration and management in the Australian Alps
- Panel discussion and concluding comments
- Collecting, conserving and using alpine seeds – key steps and considerations
- Alpine vegetation communities and environment
Find out more about the activities involved in the research program, and the involvement of the Friends, at the Alpine Plant Research: Climate Change and Conservation page on this site.