engleski

New insights into the biogeography of the genus Edraianthus (Campanulaceae) using GIS and environmental modelling

The genus Edraianthus (Campanulaceae) has the centre of its distribution in western Balkans with disjunctions in the Apennines, Sicily and S Carpathians. It has been extensively studied since the end of the 19th century. Initially particular interests were raised to taxonomical and chorological problems, while recent research efforts have been focused on phylogenetic and phylogeographic relationships, both between the closely related genera and within the genus. Furthermore, quaternary range shift patterns of some representatives were studied based on the molecular data. Consequently, accurate published data on Edraianthus species occurrences are today available along with existing herbarium specimen collections. The development of GIS software allows us to properly collect and process such data and when combined with environmental data and ecological niche modelling (ENM) we can predict species distribution in a geographic space according to a prediction of their environmental space. Models projected to past environmental conditions can help understanding late quaternary range shifts and to locate potential Pleistocene refugia. Here we present the results of our work on the distribution of Edraianthus tenuifolius using GIS methodology with available environmental data. Combining GIS with standard statistic methods allows us to recognize distributional patterns or biogeographically distinct entities.

Edraianthus; ecological niche modelling

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