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Ex situ Conservation of Endemic, Endangered and Vulnerable Plant Species from the Arid Lands of Chile

Echinopsis chiloensis (Cactaceae), one of the species targeted for seed collection from arid lands of Chile

The purpose of this project is conserving seeds from 20% of the endemic and 60% of threatened species from the Desert & Mediterranean Ecosystems of Chile. The flora from these regions is under threat from increased human pressure, especially through habitat loss, and existing in situ protection measures have limited impact. The National Agricultural Research Institute (INIA) has been working with Seed Conservation Department at Kew and a range of national partners since 2002 developing a successful conservation programme, involving species targeting and locating, seed collecting, processing and banking.

Germination tests are carried out to assess the quality of the seed collections and research helps to remove barriers to seed use and to maximise seed storage potential. Seed samples are collected and banked in the Seed Bank in INIA in Vicuña (Chile) and duplicates are sent to and banked in the Millennium Seed Bank (MSB) in the UK.  Seeds from 349 native species have been conserved at the MSB so far. 6% of the banked species are considered threatened at the national level, 21% and 8% at the regional level in the IV and V region of Chile, respectively. However, more precise targeting targeting and conservation in the desert and Mediterranean regions of Chile is currently hampered by the lack of updated red lists, scarce herbarium vouchers and botanical information in-country. Training, collecting and research are being carried out to help meet the targets and more integrated collaborations between the different organizations and stakeholders involved in plant conservation are sought to strengthen the national capacity for ex situ conservation. 

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