Brian Ford-Lloyd recently added Professor of Plant Conservation Genetics to the titles of Director of the University Graduate School and Deputy Head of the School of Biosciences at the University of Birmingham. Well, when I say recently, it was three years ago. Anyway, when you become a professor like that, you’re supposed to give an inaugural lecture. And Brian finally did that last week. By special arrangement, here’s his presentation, entitled “Options for conserving agrobiodiversity in a rapidly changing world.” Now go pre-order his book. Congratulations, Brian!
Brian gave an excellent inaugural lecture last Thursday. But he was a little premature in announcing the imminent publication of Plant Genetic Resources and Climate Change (edit. by M Jackson, BV Ford-Lloyd & ML Parry), to be published by CABI later this year. I’m still receiving manuscripts, and editing!
Agrobiodiversity as defined by Qualset et al. (1995): including all crops and livestock and their wild relatives, and all interacting species of pollinators, symbionts, pests, parasites, predators and competitors.
Agrobiodiversity as defined by Ford-Lloyd: “Plant Genetic Resources (Agrobiodiversity) The total genetic diversity of cultivated species and their wild relatives, much of which may be valuable to breeders.”
Problem for managing crops: the second definition assumes the more the better. However, with the first definition the more genetic diversity the more the biotic problems and these problems could overwhelm the (possible) advantages of diversity – in particular when CWRs are around.
As the person who just may {never sure of this} have introduced `agrobiodiversity’ to the Western World (D. Wood 1992 Talking Point: A Matter of Good Breeding. New Scientist. 18 Jan. 1992) I go along with the Qualset et al. usage: it adds an extra, and negative, dimension to diversity management.