2024 Poster Session
Sakyi, K, K; Riddle, C; Laport, R, G
The College of Idaho, 2112 Cleveland Blvd, Caldwell, ID
Abstract
American chestnut (Castanea dentata) occupies a special place in the cultural history of North America stretching back to pre-colonial periods. The rapid functional extinction of C. dentata due to the spread of chestnut blight (Cryphonectria parasitica) occurred rapidly within the lived memory for many residents of eastern North America, representing a significant biodiversity and cultural loss. While breeding and biotechnology efforts have been successful in generating partially blight-resistant trees, successful restoration of C. dentata to eastern forests will require the establishment of genetically diverse, self-sustaining blight-resistant populations of trees. Unfortunately, relatively few reproductive trees remain in the native range, and it is likely that some genetic diversity important for local adaptation was lost during the spread of C. parasitica over the last ~100 years. American chestnuts planted in western North America before the advent of chestnut blight, by people who migrated from the east, may represent an important source of novel genetic variation, and an opportunity to aid restoration efforts by reintroducing pre-blight genetic variants into mature remnant and blight-resistant trees in eastern North America. We aim to locate, gather specimens from, and genetically analyze American chestnuts throughout the inland and Pacific Northwest. Of the specimens we have analyzed so far, the majority appear to be genetically related to populations in the northern part of the historical range. With expanded sampling, we aim to better understand genetic diversity and geographic origins of western trees, potentially increasing the genetic diversity available for restoration efforts.