About this Research Topic
Understanding diversity patterns and the effect of global change on abundance, distribution patterns and species survival are of the most discussed topics in biodiversity research. Species are disappearing worldwide, mostly due to habitat loss, but other factors like climate change are likely to increase in importance during the 21st century. Thus, one of the most worrying issues is that we still do not know the optimal abiotic and biotic requirements for population persistence of many of the still existing species, which makes it very difficult, if not impossible, to make appropriate recommendations for their conservation in terms of proposing an effective management of their sites. Analysis of these requirements is, however, strongly dependent on the taxonomic group considered and on life history strategies of the species that comprise the group.
In this Research Topic, we concentrate on this issue applied to orchids, one of the most abundant groups of flowering plants with approximately 30,000 species. They are classified among the most threatened groups worldwide. Of the approximately 1000 species that have been evaluated, almost 60% are threatened, endangered or extinct. For a few orchid species, detailed records from monitoring efforts provide opportunities for comparative analyses of species declines through time. However, for most orchid species we still lack population data and there have been few studies that have focused on the environmental factors and species traits associated with the decline of orchid sites and species numbers.
Given the relatively small number of studies that have focused on orchid ecology and the potential impacts of increased degradation of habitats globally and the consequences of climate change, we believe that the main focus of this Research topic should be given to a range of topics that are relevant to orchid ecology and conservation. Therefore, we welcome a range of contributions (including original research articles, reviews, perspectives, and opinion pieces) on themes including but not limited to:
• Orchid-fungal symbioses and their implications for orchid population dynamics and survival.
• Population level research including viability analyses, especially those considering importance of life history strategies.
• Research on the genetic diversity of orchids, an essential component of efforts to effectively conserve orchids.
• Effect of climate change on the population dynamics and survival of orchid species
In this Research Topic, we concentrate on this issue applied to orchids, one of the most abundant groups of flowering plants with approximately 30,000 species. They are classified among the most threatened groups worldwide. Of the approximately 1000 species that have been evaluated, almost 60% are threatened, endangered or extinct. For a few orchid species, detailed records from monitoring efforts provide opportunities for comparative analyses of species declines through time. However, for most orchid species we still lack population data and there have been few studies that have focused on the environmental factors and species traits associated with the decline of orchid sites and species numbers.
Given the relatively small number of studies that have focused on orchid ecology and the potential impacts of increased degradation of habitats globally and the consequences of climate change, we believe that the main focus of this Research topic should be given to a range of topics that are relevant to orchid ecology and conservation. Therefore, we welcome a range of contributions (including original research articles, reviews, perspectives, and opinion pieces) on themes including but not limited to:
• Orchid-fungal symbioses and their implications for orchid population dynamics and survival.
• Population level research including viability analyses, especially those considering importance of life history strategies.
• Research on the genetic diversity of orchids, an essential component of efforts to effectively conserve orchids.
• Effect of climate change on the population dynamics and survival of orchid species
Keywords: Orchids, threats to species survival, conservation, species richness, species diversity, distribution, population dynamics, orchid-fungal interactions, life history strategies, global
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
