Key takeaways
- Using cutting-edge whole-genome sequencing, researchers from UCLA and The Nature Conservancy are identifying oak populations that are most naturally resistant to climate change to inform conservation efforts.
- Recent studies by the partners provide valuable data to inform large-scale restoration programs, moving acorns from heat-adapted trees to areas where they are most likely to survive climate change.
- Oaks support more of the biodiversity and ecosystems in California than any other tree.
Researchers at UCLA, in partnership with global conservation organization The Nature Conservancy (TNC), have pioneered a new conservation approach that uses cutting-edge gene sequencing to save oak trees.
Climate change and habitat conversion threaten the continued survival of oaks, which provide a critical habitat for thousands of plant and animal species, support local economies and play a vital role in removing carbon from the atmosphere.
In recent studies, researchers from UCLA's Sork Lab and TNC collected oak leaves from across California. They analyzed the entire genetic code of hundreds of oak trees, which can live more than 500 years, to identify the specific genes that help trees thrive in warmer climates. Reforesting with acorns from those trees can help ensure healthier oak forests that are well adapted to survive in a rapidly changing climate.
These studies represent a unique bridge between academic research and applied conservation that promises to supercharge efforts to conserve hundreds of thousands of acres of critical habitat. The new method could become a template for conservation efforts for other vital species in California and around the world.
"Genomics is the missing link between laboratory science and effective land management. By mapping the patterns of genetic variation underlying how different populations respond to heat and drought, my research team provides the scientific framework for the strategic movement of climate-resilient seeds to new areas," said UCLA evolutionary biologist Victoria Sork, a distinguished professor in the department of ecology and evolutionary biology and lead author of the research.
"If you plant oaks that are adapted to today's temperatures, then when the temperature changes, it's pulling the rug out from under all the trees," Sork said. "We have to plant seeds for the future, with the climate-adapted genetic variation to help them survive."
Co-authoring two of these studies with Sork is Ryan Buck, an evolutionary biologist working in Sork Labs. Their research builds on support from the National Science Foundation as well as the UCLA La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science, which leads the California Conservation Genomics Project, a state-funded initiative that generates comprehensive genomic data to protect biodiversity.
Using the research, The Nature Conservancy has already planted acorns containing the identified gene variations in three of its preserves.
"We're now putting this science into practice across California," said Scott Butterfield, Land Program Lead Scientist for The Nature Conservancy. "By using genomic data to guide restoration at our TNC Preserves, we can test whether trees predicted to be more climate-resilient actually perform better on the ground. That kind of real-world validation is essential to scaling solutions that will sustain oak woodlands and the biodiversity they support into the future."
