Abstract
Several fern species have genuine arctic-alpine distributions in the northern Hemisphere. Five diploid species, i.e. Asplenium viride Huds., Athyrium distentifolium Tausch ex Opiz, Dryopteris expansa (C.B. Presl) Fraser-Jenk ins & Jermy, Polystichum lonchitis (L.) Roth., Woodsia ilvensis (L.) R. Br. and three tetraploid species, Cryptogramma crispa (L.) R. Br., Cystopteris montana (Lam.) Desvaux and Woodsia alpina (Bolton) S.F. Gray are distributed widely in Europe. By exploring discontinuities of ploidy-levels, breeding systems and genetic variation we have developed ferns as model organisms to address questions such as (1) postglacial colonisation versus in situ survival during the ice-age, (2) biogeographic links and relationships between different regions (3) assessing conservation priorities and needs. We will compare data from two large datasets on Asplenium viride and Athyrium distentifolium.
Dieses Werk steht unter der Lizenz Creative Commons Namensnennung 4.0 International.
Copyright (c) 2026 Johannes C. Vogel, Frederick J. Rumsey, Stephen J. Russell, John A. Barrett, Mary Gibby