Project Leaders:   
Sally Aitken, Kermit Ritland

Lead Institution:   
University of British Columbia

Research Funding Program:   
SOF 2

The forests of British Columbia are facing unprecedented rates of climate change, and their responses will have major economic and environmental consequences for the province. These forests play a major role in the BC economy, and also directly affect atmospheric carbon dioxide levels as healthy sinks or unhealthy sources. The ability of trees to be resilient to climate change will depend in part on their genetic makeup and genomic architecture for traits related to adaptation to climate.

The Genome BC-funded ‘Treenomix Conifer Forest Health' project and the Genome Quebec funded ‘Arborea' projects have generated a wealth of genomic resources for the genus Picea (spruce). Among conifers, these extensive resources are matched only in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda). The ‘Adaptation' component of Treenomix has characterized clinal patterns of variation and associations between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) and adaptation-related phenotypes by identifying over 500 SNP in 174 candidate genes in wild populations of Sitka spruce (P.sitchensis).

Researchers in this project will test these markers for utility in management of genetic resources in anticipation of climate change in other spruce species prevalent in BC. This will allow us to assess whether artificial selection can provide natural and breeding populations adapted to new climates, in particular whether trees with novel SNPs from more extreme environments can be effectively grown in BC. This project will test whether genomic knowledge can help guide assisted migration or artificial selection to facilitate planted forests becoming more resilient to new climates.