title: Establishing a Wild, Ex Situ Population of a Critically Endangered Shade-Tolerant Rainforest Conifer: A Translocation Experiment.
abstract: Translocation can reduce extinction risk by increasing population size and geographic range, and is increasingly being used in the management of rare and threatened plant species. A critical determinant of successful plant establishment is light environment. Wollemia nobilis (Wollemi pine) is a critically endangered conifer, with a wild population of 83 mature trees and a highly restricted distribution of less than 10 km2. We used under-planting to establish a population of W. nobilis in a new rainforest site. Because its optimal establishment conditions were unknown, we conducted an experimental translocation, planting in a range of different light conditions from deeply shaded to high light gaps. Two years after the experimental translocation, 85% of plants had survived. There were two distinct responses: very high survival (94%) but very low growth, and lower survival (69%) and higher growth, associated with initial plant condition. Overall survival of translocated W. nobilis was strongly increased in planting sites with higher light, in contrast to previous studies demonstrating long-term survival of wild W. nobilis juveniles in deep shade. Translocation by under-planting may be useful in establishing new populations of shade-tolerant plant species, not least by utilizing the range of light conditions that occur in forest understories.
authors.affiliation: School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, University of Melbourne, Richmond, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Heidi C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Zimmer
authors.affiliation: The Australian PlantBank, Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, The Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Catherine A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Offord
authors.affiliation: Office of Environment and Heritage NSW, Hurstville, New South Wales, Australia.|Centre for Ecosystem Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Tony D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Auld
authors.affiliation: School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, University of Melbourne, Richmond, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Patrick J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Baker
mesh_terms: D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods*; D056727:Endangered Species; D053476:Extinction, Biological; D018547:Plant Stems / Q000254:growth & development / Q000528:radiation effects; D065947:Rainforest; D012306:Risk; D013472:Sunlight; D064028:Tracheophyta / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects*