LAUSR

A broad definition of a crop wild relative is any taxon within the same genus as a crop species, or in the case of some crop genepools, other closely related genera. Given the large number of species cultivated for human and animal food, and medicinal, ornamental, environmental, and industrial purposes, the number of taxa related to these crops is inevitably vast, one estimate being >58,000 species globally. Limited resources for conservation management demands careful planning so that taxa in most urgent need of conservation are given priority. Various prioritization criteria have been used to target wild taxa for conservation action; however, in the case of crop wild relatives, a specific approach is needed to take account of their particular value as potential sources of traits for crop improvement. A surge in conservation planning for crop wild relatives since the turn of the century has resulted in a wide range of different crop wild relative prioritization criteria and methods being applied. This paper reviews those criteria and methods and presents a harmonized, logical, and pragmatic means of assigning priority status to crop wild relative taxa on the basis of three main criteria: (i) the socioeconomic value of crops, (ii) the relative potential value of the wild relatives of socioeconomically valuable crops for variety improvement, and (iii) the relative threat status of the wild relatives of socioeconomically valuable crops. S.P. Kell,* B.V. Ford-Lloyd, J. Magos Brehm, and N. Maxted, School of Biosciences, Univ. of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK; J.M. Iriondo, Univ. Rey Juan Carlos, Área de Biodiversidad y Conservación, c/Tulipán s/n, E28933 Móstoles, Madrid, Spain. Received 10 Oct. 2016. Accepted 22 Mar. 2017. *Corresponding author ([email protected]). Assigned to Associate Editor Stella Kantartzi. Abbreviations: CWR, crop wild relative(s); GP, Gene Pool; IUCN, International Union for the Conservation of Nature; PGR, plant genetic resources; PGRFA, plant genetic resources for food and agriculture; SADC, South African Development Community; SPGRC, South African Development Community Plant Genetic Resources Centre; TG, Taxon Group. Published in Crop Sci. 57:1042–1058 (2017). doi: 10.2135/cropsci2016.10.0873 © Crop Science Society of America | 5585 Guilford Rd., Madison, WI 53711 USA This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Published June 16, 2017