New frontiers in community and ecosystem genetics for theory, conservation, and management

The effects of genetic variation in species can have large impacts on direct and indirect species interactions, associated biodiversity and ecosystem function. Biodiversity and ecosystem function can change as a consequence of evolutionary dynamics (Barbour et al., 2009), thus, linking evolution strongly with community and ecosystem ecology. At the 2011 International Botanical Congress in Melbourne, Australia, a symposium entitled, ‘Community and ecosystem genetics: the extended genetic effects of plant species’, examined new research in the field of community and ecosystem genetics. Talks focused on: links between contemporary ecological interactions and historic evolutionary dynamics; the role of feedbacks as mechanisms in driving patterns of biodiversity and ecosystem function; and application of these approaches to management and conservation issues as they relate to global change. The symposium concluded that an understanding of evolutionary divergence and adaptation, and the role of ecological feedbacks in natural systems, will be fundamental to successful outcomes in future conservation, restoration and management decisions.