M. B. MacKay

A team of equals: teaching writing in the sciences

Writing across the curriculum (WAC) is a way of integrating the teaching of writing into specific academic disciplines. A problem faced in the WAC literature is how to develop a process that integrates the skills of multi‐disciplinary teams. In this project, action research was used to develop a team comprising faculty from the applied sciences and a writing teacher which had been commissioned to integrate the teaching of writing into an undergraduate horticulture course. Five features of action research were of particular importance: the foci of change and collaboration, the rational, systematic process it provided, the locating of the research in a real as opposed to controlled context, and the dual foci of action and research. Action research provided a successful process and structure for the project: outcomes included changed attitudes to writing amongst students and a deeper understanding of how students value written assessment. Unexpected outcomes included spontaneous participation of students in the action research process, the provision of useful methods of reflection for teaching staff, and the development of professional trust amongst faculty from different disciplines.

Analysis of geographic and taxonomic groups informs conservation of Rhododendron subgenus Vireya (Ericaceae)

Although Rhododendron subg. Vireya, comprising 400 taxa, is one of the largest plant genera in Southeast Asia, with taxa found throughout the region, it has a significant conservation problem, with conservation status assessments in 2011 and 2015 placing 201 taxa in an IUCN Red List threat category. Plant conservation is driven by the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation, with Target 8 requiring 75 % of threatened plant taxa to be conserved in ex situ collections, by 2020. To date there has been limited analysis of conservation priorities for subg. Vireya, or any consideration of how its geographic characteristics, complex taxonomy, and existing ex situ collections might influence priorities. We analyse the IUCN Red List status of geographic origins and taxonomic sections within Rhododendron subg. Vireya, then determine the representation of those groups in cultivation in New Zealand and selected international collections. Using a set of ‘Red List’ and ‘not in cultivation’ factors, our analysis shows that geographic origins New Guinea, Sumatra and Sulawesi, and taxonomic sections Schistanthe: malesia, Schistanthe: euvireya, and Hadranthe (Phaeovireya) should have priority for both in situ and ex situ conservation. Of the 400 taxa, 245 (61 %) are in cultivation, and of the 201 Red List taxa, 80 (40 %) are in cultivation. Wild-source material is held for 218 taxa, including 66 Red List taxa. These analyses provide baseline data for development of a conservation strategy for Rhododendron subg. Vireya, and we propose six actions that should be included in that strategy.

New Zealand collections of Rhododendron as a resource for ex situ conservation

ABSTRACT This study uses Rhododendron L. collections in New Zealand to analyse the contribution of introduced species in cultivation to global ex situ conservation. Living botanical collections of Red List taxa are the fundamental resource that enable ex situ conservation, and Target 8 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation requires 75% of Red List taxa to be in ex situ collections by 2020. We compared Rhododendron taxa (species, subspecies, botanical varieties) in New Zealand with the range of taxa in international cultivation, and determined the presence of taxa from Red List categories, geographic origins and taxonomic groups. The 566 taxa in New Zealand, including 224 Red List taxa, encompass 67% of the taxa in cultivation worldwide, ranking second internationally for number of taxa in the collections investigated. New Zealand holds wild-collected material of 230 taxa, including 70 Red List taxa, and 20 taxa for which wild material is not listed in the international collections studied. China is the geographic origin of the greatest number of Rhododendron Red List taxa held in New Zealand. Of the 77 taxonomic subsections of Rhododendron, New Zealand holds 75% or more of the taxa in cultivation for 37 subsections, and 75% or more of the Red List taxa in cultivation for 24 subsections. The greatest numbers of Red List taxa in New Zealand collections are from section Rhododendron subsection Maddenia (20) and section Pontica subsection Neriiflora (17). Our analysis enables us to (1) propose conservation action for Rhododendron in New Zealand, (2) summarise our approach as a model for examining other introduced plant genera in New Zealand, and (3) propose our method as a component of an ex situ conservation strategy for New Zealand.

Geographic analysis of Red List Rhododendron (Ericaceae) taxa by country of origin identifies priorities for ex situ conservation

A Red List assessment is insufficient to determine priorities for ex situ conservation in large genera such as Rhododendron, where there may be hundreds of taxa in any one Red List category. We have utilised an analysis of the geographic origins of 1?215 taxa of Rhododendron (Ericaceae) as a method to prioritise Red List taxa for ex situ conservation. This analysis includes descriptions of distribution and endemism by country of origin, analysis of the incidence of the 715 Red List taxa by country of origin, and determination of the extent to which taxa from each country of origin are in cultivation. We determined that of 30 countries of origin and a ‘Europe’ aggregate, 24 origins contain Red List taxa. Of those 24 origins, 17 origins and ‘Europe’ have greater than 75 % of Red List taxa ‘in cultivation’, as defined in this study, so that Target 8 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation has theoretically been met. However, for some of these origins the number of each taxon held ‘in cultivation’ is very low and genetic diversity is likely to be poor. The remaining six countries of origin have less than 75 % of Red List Rhododendron taxa recorded ‘in cultivation’ (Indonesia (28 %), Papua New Guinea (29 %), Malaysia (59 %), China (60 %), Japan (62 %) and Solomon Islands (0 %)). Analysis of a set of Red List factors and ‘not in cultivation’ factors reveals that Red List taxa from Indonesia, China and Papua New Guinea should take priority for ex situ conservation.