Alison Paulo Bernardi

Podocarpus lambertii (Podocarpaceae) is an endangered conifer, endemic to Brazil and occurring in continuous forest and forest-grassland landscapes from the Araucaria Forest. Aiming to support conservation efforts for P. lambertii populations and gain insights into the preservation of forest-grassland mosaics in southern Brazil, we assessed the spa...

Ecological restoration mitigates the negative effects of fragmentation and habitat loss. This practice allows the conservation of key species, such as Ocotea porosa, a tree native to the Araucaria Forest and extremely endangered. A key point in restoration projects is the source of seeds, as well as guidelines for collection. When carried out under...

The concern with food security, aiming at food production without or with low use of pesticides, has been increasing in recent years. The use of pesticides requires necessary care during their application since they can generate several negative consequences for producers and consumers. Also, the incorrect use of these chemicals has caused problems...

Understanding spatiotemporal variations in genetic diversity and mating system can allow policymakers to better support actions towards conservation and management of plant populations. However, multiyear studies are still scarce for many long-lived tree species. Therefore, we herein analyze how genetic diversity, genetic structure and mating syste...

The restinga is a threatened Brazilian ecosystem and a highly heterogeneous environment. This work aimed to evaluate demographic and genetic aspects of Varronia curassavica and whether environmental heterogeneity can infl uence the studied population parameters. Three annual evaluations were carried out in an area of restinga in Florianópolis-SC, B...

Phylogeography and species distribution models (SDMs) were integrated to test the hypothesis that the current disjunct distribution of Podocarpus lambertii, a cold-tolerant species, preserves the signature of Quaternary climatic oscillations, revealing historical barriers to gene flow. Twenty-five populations (286 individuals) of P. lambertii were...

The reproductive system determines evolutionary inheritance of populations by establishing patterns of gametes union to originate the next generation. The objective of this study was to investigate the mating system of Mimosa scabrella Benth. (bracatinga), a Brazilian tree species with socioeconomic and ecological importance, in a population of the...

Resumo O estudo objetivou caracterizar a diversidade genética em duas populações de Mimosa scabrella Benth. (bracatinga) em Lages-SC, Região Sul do Brasil, situadas em Floresta Ombrófila Mista Montana com paisagens distintas. A população da Fazenda Experimental da UDESC encontra-se em região com histórico de uso para agricultura e pecuária em passa...

Distinct environments drive particular responses in the reproduction pattern of plants and may have ecological and evolutionary consequences for local populations. Currently, populations of the palm Butia eriospatha are found in forests and open grasslands in southern Brazil, providing opportunities to investigate how this species responds to recen...

The grasslands conversion to forests is occurring globally and modifying the population dynamics of species. Here, we characterized the population dynamics of Podocarpus lambertii Klotzsch ex Endl. over four years in southern Brazilian forest-grassland mosaics. We asked (i) if the studied P. lambertii population would decrease or increase over time...

Overall, the aim of this study was to characterize the population dynamics and understand the phylogeographic scenario of the conifer Podocarpus lambertii in order to generate knowledge to promote its conservation over time.

Restoration of degraded ecosystems is essential for the conservation of global biodiversity. In southern Brazil, the Araucaria forest is a highly reduced and fragmented ecosystem of the Atlantic Forest Biome, and restoration is recommended for the conservation of both Araucaria forest and Araucaria angustifolia, an endangered conifer of this ecosys...

Anthropic pressure has caused several changes in the environment, such as habitat loss and fragmentation. One effective way to evaluate its effects on population genetics is to monitor populations through time. We aimed to characterize the population genetics of six plant species at two different times (cohorts). We asked (1) if populations show ge...

This study characterized the demography and spatial pattern of a yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis A.St.-Hil) population covering areas with different use histories (Presence and Absence of Cattle) in a Araucaria Forest. Data collection was performed in three ha, half in each area. The frequency of individuals by height, spatial distribution pattern,...

In this study, we broadly characterized the genetic diversity of two endangered tree species, Euterpe edulis and Ocotea catharinensis. These species represent different ecological characteristics and different landscape situations, and they were selected within a wide sampling network in the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil, aiming to elucidate the...

In this chapter, we presented the population structure and genetic diversity of 13 widely used species that are also endowed with great conservation value. Most of these species are found in national- and state-level threatened species lists, namely, Apuleia leiocarpa, Araucaria angustifolia, Butia catarinensis, Butia eriospatha, Calophyllum brasi...

Traditional land use may play a key role in conserving and promoting ecosystem integrity. However, little is known about conserving genetic diversity in such traditional management systems. The Brazilian pine (Araucaria angustifolia) is an important element of traditionally managed landscapes in southern Brazil but is currently considered at risk o...

Phylogeographic studies allow us to better understand the past history of species and the factors that mold their current distribution. Here, we demonstrate the potential human impact on the distribution of a tree species. In particular, it was hypothesized that Araucaria angustifolia, an endangered South American conifer, was dispersed from its Pl...

In this study, we employ an integrated demographic/genetic approach with the aim of informing efforts to conserve Ocotea catharinensis, an endangered tree species from the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest. After establishing two permanent plots (15 and 15.5 ha) within Protected Areas in Santa Catarina state, Brazil, we evaluated demographic aspects (d...

Mimosa scabrella Benth., popularly known as “bracatinga”, is a pioneer and endemic species of Brazil, occurring in Mixed Ombrophilous Forest associated with Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest biomes. It is a fast-growing tree of the Fabaceae family that facilitates the dynamics of ecological succession. SSR development, when there is no genome sequence,...

In order to plant parana-pines (Araucaria angustifolia (Bertol.) Kuntze) for seed production, as for any other forest management activity, planning is needed, especially because of the significant amount of waiting time between planting and seed collection. Consequently, there is a lack of basic ecological information. Several studies based on the...

RESUMO Varronia curassavica Jacq. (Boraginaceae) está presente na vegetação de restinga e apresenta relevantes propriedades medicinais. A espécie é explorada especialmente por comunidades locais e pela indústria farmacêutica, porém, carece de informações ecológicas e genéticas a seu respeito. Nesse contexto, o estudo foi conduzido com o objetivo de...

In this study, we carried out a survey of the floristic composition, phytosociological structure, ecological groups, and dispersal syndromes of the species occurring in riparian zones in the highlands of Santa Catarina state in order to select species for recovery programs. The study area is located in the municipality of Otacílio Costa. We employe...

Com o objetivo de selecionar espécies para programas de recuperação em Áreas de Preservação Permanente no Planalto Catarinense foi realizado o levantamento da composição florística e da estrutura fitossociológica e, a caracterização dos grupos ecológicos e síndromes de dispersão das espécies ocorrentes nestes locais. A área de estudo, fazenda Campo...