Eduardo Cires

Alien Invasive Species (AIS) are among the principal threats to humanity due to their substantial ecological, social, and economic impacts. International efforts to harmonize national AIS checklists and databases is often hindered by fragmented data across multiple platforms. The Celtic Fringe, a biogeographically coherent unit within the European Atlantic Floristic Region, includes part of the Iberian Peninsula, France and the British Isles, and is notable for its extensively documented flora. Here, we present the first unified AIS checklist and georeferenced occurrence database for the entire Celtic Fringe, with occurrences mapped to a 10 × 10 km UTM grid resolution. Occurrence data were aggregated from public datasets, while the harmonized AIS checklist of 271 taxa was developed through the integration of national and international sources. The resulting database comprises 164,974 occurrences, each enriched with taxonomic, floristic, and administrative metadata to facilitate use across multiple geographic and governance levels. This harmonized and standardised resource is designed to support AIS management at local, national, and transnational scales, while facilitating conservation planning and research on invasion dynamics.

The aim of this research is to explore the association between the functional morphology of mosses, expressed through their life forms, and their reproductive traits under different levels of water tolerance. This is done to elucidate the distribution and coexistence patterns of species along forest trails in the municipality of Proaza, Asturias. A total of 78 species were sampled. The association between water tolerance and reproductive traits—sexual system (dioecious vs. monoecious) and type of reproduction (sexual and asexual)—was analyzed in a 3x2 contingency table. Fisher's exact test was chosen, with a p-value estimated through a Monte Carlo simulation. The results indicate that mosses exhibit important adaptations. Desiccation-tolerant life forms, such as lawns and cushions (62.8%), predominate by optimizing water retention through external capillary action, allowing them to colonize exposed habitats. In contrast, vulnerable forms such as fans (6.4%) are restricted to damp and shady environments. Reproductively, the dioecious system is predominant (80%), which favors genetic diversity through cross-fertilization. Sexual reproduction is key for the colonization and dispersal of these species. Distribution patterns reflect a mosaic of microhabitats that impose selective pressures. The result is a segregation of reproductive and morphological strategies that, together, explain the diversity and ecology of mosses in the region.

Plant biodiversity DNA banks are scarce despite the current plant biodiversity loss, their value for ex situ conservation, DNA preservation progress, and the rapid growth of DNA‐dependent research fields. We explore the principles and basic organization of plant biodiversity DNA banking and propose new ways of addressing the biodiversity loss through their implementation. Small departmental collections can be created through a six‐step holistic process that integrates three types of collections (DNA extracts, DNA‐rich tissues, and herbarium vouchers) to generate extended specimens, thereby contributing to local and global plant biodiversity knowledge and conservation efforts. We propose a revision to the international biobanking strategy (the Dynamo scheme) that leverages the strengths of interconnected small departmental collections. By doing so, we can mitigate the risk of sample loss in the event of a catastrophe, optimize sampling strategies, and provide more comprehensive coverage of taxa and distribution ranges while fostering national and international collaborations.

Ischyropsalis is a genus of harvestmen inhabiting both terrestrial and caves in central and southern Europe. The accepted number of species is controversial due to feature similarities and their strong sexual dimorphism. The northern part of the Iberian Peninsula harbours 11 accepted taxa, four of which are terrestrial, while the other seven exclusively live in caves. Some of these species have not been included in the only phylogenetic study conducted on this genus, so their taxonomic status has not been evaluated yet. In this context, we aim to unravel the phylogenetic relationships among the taxa within this genus, from the northern part of the Iberian Peninsula, by conducting morphological and phylogenetic analyses based on mitochondrial (COI) and nuclear (EF1-α) molecular markers. Phylogenetic analyses revealed three previously undescribed species from karst caves in Cantabria and Asturias, herein described as I. damiani sp. nov., I. impressa sp. nov. and I. aguerana sp. nov.

Laserpitium s.l. (Apiaceae family) is a taxonomically complex genus comprising 13–35 herbaceous species distributed through the North Hemisphere. Molecular studies based on nuclear markers and focused on the Scandiceae tribe divided this genus into various genera and revealed that their fruit (schizocarp) morphology generated non-monophyletic groups. In this context, some Iberian subspecies of Laserpitium latifolium, Laserpitium gallicum, Thapsia nestleri, Thapsia eliasii, and Silphiodaucus prutenicus subsp. dufourianus have an unclear taxonomic status, while Laserpitium longiradium genetic adscription has not been confirmed. We aim to determine their phylogenetic position within Laserpitium s.l. and their taxonomic status based on nuclear (ITS) and plastid (rpl16, trnL and trnL–trnF) markers, carpological data and biogeographic analyses. Our topologies and biogeographic analyses only validated one of these subspecies. Nevertheless, phylogenetic relationships, niche differences and biogeographic ranges supported the division of Thapsia s.l. into three genera: Iberian-French Thapsia s.s., a new Iberian genus (formed by Thapsia nestleri, Thapsia eliasii and Laserpitium longiradium) and the Mediterranean Elaeoselinum, in which various species have been included for the first time. The Iberian Silphiodaucus prutenicus subsp. dufourianus is a separate species. Finally, overlapping carpological features within Laserpitium s.l. further supports the schizocarp homoplastic character hypothesis.

Cantabrian mixed forests, located in areas of Spain, Portugal, and France, serve as an essential biogeographic transition region, noted for its extraordinary plant diversity and ecological intricacy. To aid conservation and research initiatives, a uniform checklist of vascular plants was created, incorporating information from citizen science platforms, scientific databases, herbarium records, and local floras. The outcome is a carefully selected collection of more than 8000 taxa, with over 76% recognized as native, highlighting the area’s importance as a reservoir of biodiversity and a climate refuge. Taxonomic discrepancies were resolved via expert verification and adherence to international naming standards, establishing a dependable basis for ecological research. The checklist demonstrates notable variations in organisms, ecological approaches, and evolutionary lineages, influenced by geographical diversity, climate variations, and past land use patterns. Importantly, the study emphasizes the drawbacks of unchecked biodiversity data and shows the benefits of expert-driven synthesis for addressing gaps and biases in species documentation. The floristic information presented here can act as a basis for transboundary conservation planning, ongoing biodiversity tracking, and the development of adaptive management approaches in response to climate change and ecological decline. This initiative represents an important move towards safeguarding the distinct natural heritage of this distinctive biogeographic region.

Plant biodiversity DNA banks are scarce despite the current plant biodiversity loss, their value for ex situ conservation, DNA preservation progress and the rapid growth of DNA-dependent research fields. We explore the principles and basic organization of plant biodiversity DNA banking and propose new ways of addressing the biodiversity loss through their implementation. Small Department collections could be created through a 6-step holistic process aiming to interconnect 3 types of collections (DNA extracts, DNA-rich tissues and herbarium vouchers) while generating Extended Specimens that would contribute to local and global plant biodiversity knowledge and conservation efforts. We propose a change in the international biobanking strategy (the Dynamo scheme) as interconnecting many small Department collections would put fewer samples at risk in case of catastrophe, optimise sampling strategies and cover in depth more taxa and distribution ranges, while encouraging national and international collaborations.

Genista anglica L. (Fabaceae) is a Western European plant, widespread from Northern Morocco to Southern Sweden, with two geographically isolated populations in Calabria (Italy). Based on morphological characters, some authors considered the southern Italian populations as two different species: Genista silana and Genista brutia. Recent phylogeographical studies reveal that the G. silana and G. brutia populations share genetic similarities with some populations of the widespread G. anglica from Northwestern of Iberian Peninsula, despite a distance of approximately 2000 km. Previously, other authors suggested anthropogenic introduction of these plants in the South of Italy, but this hypothesis has not been thoroughly investigated. To unravel the uncertain origin of the isolated Italian populations, we conducted a more detailed study about the genetic relationships between southern Italian populations and Northwestern of Iberian Peninsula populations of G. anglica s.l., using plastid DNA sequences. Our results show identical and similar haplotypes in some of the populations of the Northwestern of Iberian Peninsula and the Italian populations, which supports the hypothesis of a recent anthropogenic introduction.