Black poplar: A model for gene resource conservation in forest ecosystems

Conservation of genetic resources of forest trees has become a major objective for the management of forests. Much theoretical work has been devoted to the subject, and implementation has already started at the local, national, or international scales. Poplars are probably the most representative and threatened forest tree species of old natural floodplain forests in the temperate zone. Gene conservation needs to be integrated with intensive breeding activities, habitat conservation and restoration. For Populus nigra, while research in genetics and ecology is reinforced, a combined conservation strategy is applied at the European scale; simultaneously, the conservation of riparian ecosystems is also a priority. Research and application benefit from each other. The question now is the evaluation of such an integrated strategy. Criteria and indicators for the follow-up of gene resource management are progressively developed, but still need to be tested on the operational scale. Key words: Populus nigra, poplar, gene resources, in situ conservation, ex situconservation, riparian ecosystem, sustainable management