Nature Conservation 3/2008 — 24. 6. 2008 — Research, Surveys and Data Management
The Spring Gentian Recovery Programme/Action Plan in the Czech Republic
The native distribution of the Spring Gentian (Gentiana verna) is centred in Central Europe, mainly in the Alps and the Carpathians but also in the Balkans.
The current number of sites is a small fraction of the historical distribution in what is now the Czech Republic. The dramatic decline in the G. verna populations is apparently correlated with wet habitat drainage, overall natural vegetation destruction and with extensive changes in farming methods. About 93 % of all the populations and the habitats at their sites were destroyed in the 20th century. The species now survives at three sites only. In the Czech Republic, G. verna is a cri-tically endangered plant species protected by law. The species is important not only as a part of the endangered biodiversity but it also is a good indicator of high environment quality, i.e., wet, short-grass meadows rich in mineral nutrients, with a slightly basic soil reaction and moderate le-vels of natural disturbance, which is the habitat characterized by the pre-sence of a lot of threatened species. The objectives of the Recovery Programme/Action Plan are the preservation of Spring Gentian mountain populations in northern Moravia and increasing the numbers of indivi-dual plants within the only population in southern Bohemia to the self-sustaining size. The latter objective, however, depends on re-establishing the traditional management (grazing) at the site and on improvement of hydrological conditions, which are the main driver for successful germination and recruitment. In the case of the success of the recovery activities at the site, newly propagated plants will allow experimental repatriation to additional suitable sites in the vicinity (provided that such sites will be found). A study on conditions for the long-term sustainability of the Spring Gentian's isolated populations is another part of the programme. Serious threats to the Recovery Programme/Action Plan include the very low genetic diversity of the southern Bohemian population and the problems to facilitate suitable long-term management.