Climate Adaptation for Seeds: Botanists Debate Benefits of Assisted Migration (via @nytimes)

Black-eyed susan near Chicago. Scientists debate whether "assisted migration" will be beneficial to survival of plant species in a time of rapid climate and habitat change. Photo by Bogdog Dan/flickr 

A Hunt for Seeds to Save Species, Perhaps by Helping Them Move  

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/10/science/earth/10plant.html

"...scientists from the botanic garden are sending teams out across the Midwest and West to the Rocky Mountains and Great Basin to collect seeds from different populations of 1,500 prairie species by 2010, and from 3,000 species by 2020. The goal is to preserve the species and, depending on changes in climate, perhaps even help species that generally grow near one another to migrate to a new range....

"...assisted migration, as it is called, is a hotly debated issue. On one side are those like the botanic garden scientists, who argue that the risks are better than doing nothing. ...Other scientists argue that tinkering with the complexity of habitats is courting disaster -- and huge expense.

Bureau of Land Management: Seeds of Success Program: 

http://www.nps.gov/plants/sos/

Biological Conservation Review Paper: 

Assisted migration of plants: Changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes

http://tinyurl.com/yguxsct

University of Notre Dame: Managed Relocation (Assisted Migration) Website and Resources

Home:

http://www.nd.edu/~hellmann/MRWorkingGroup/Managed_relocation.html

Resources:

 http://www.nd.edu/~hellmann/MRWorkingGroup/Pubs_%26_Media.html

Scientific American: Can "Assisted Migration" Save Species from Global Warming?

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=assited-migration-global-warming

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