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Plants
Special Issues
Taxonomy, Biogeography, Ecology, Conservation and Utilization of Gymnosperms
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Taxonomy, Biogeography, Ecology, Conservation and Utilization of Gymnosperms

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Systematics, Taxonomy, Nomenclature and Classification".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 1340

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Yong Yang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Interests: systematics; biogeography and conservation of seed plants
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Gymnosperms are defined by the naked or partially enclosed ovules/seeds, which are different from angiosperms. They are primitive seed plants, originated ca. 385 mya, and experienced a very long and complicated evolutionary history. There are 1201 extant gymnosperm species classified in 86 genera of 13 families, and many of them are relictual, e.g., Cathaya argyrophylla, Cryptomeria japonica, Ginkgo biloba, Metasequoia glyptostroboides, Taiwania cryptomerioides, Welwitschia mirabilis, Wollemeia nobilis, etc. Despite their low species diversity, gymnosperms have received worldwide attention due to their unusual phylogenetic position, unique combination of characters and ecological importance. In addition, gymnosperms are highly threatened, and many species will go extinct with global warming. However, many aspects of gymnosperms remain to be discovered. This Special Issue of Plants will highlight the systematics, biogeography, conservation and utilization of gymnosperms.

Prof. Dr. Yong Yang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biogeography
  • conservation
  • evolution
  • gymnosperms
  • phylogeny
  • systematics
  • taxonomy

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

18 pages, 29541 KB  
Article
Differential Performance of Distribution Shifts Between Endangered Coniferous and Broad-Leaved Tree Species in Subtropical China Under Climate Change
by Jie Miao, Yan Xu, David Kay Ferguson and Yong Yang
Plants 2026, 15(3), 515; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants15030515 - 6 Feb 2026
Viewed by 544
Abstract
Global warming has become one of the most serious threats to biodiversity. However, the responses of endangered tree species in subtropical regions to climate change and their potential distribution shifts remain elusive. In this study, we selected nine rare and endangered tree species [...] Read more.
Global warming has become one of the most serious threats to biodiversity. However, the responses of endangered tree species in subtropical regions to climate change and their potential distribution shifts remain elusive. In this study, we selected nine rare and endangered tree species in the subtropical forests of China encompassing both coniferous and broad-leaved groups, and conducted an assessment of their suitable distribution patterns and spatial shifts under current and future climate scenarios (SSP126, SSP370, and SSP585). For this we utilized an optimized MaxEnt model integrating multidimensional environmental variables including climate, soil, and topography. The results show that the model has high predictive accuracy after parameter optimization, with mean AUC values exceeding 0.98 for both broad-leaved and coniferous tree species. Our analysis of environmental factors indicates clear differences in distribution-limiting factors between the two functional groups. Broad-leaved species are primarily constrained by temperature-related variables, particularly the mean temperature of the coldest quarter (Bio11) and the mean diurnal range (Bio2), whereas coniferous species are more sensitive to moisture conditions, with the precipitation of the driest quarter (Bio17) as the key limiting factor for their potential distributions. Under current climatic conditions, highly suitable habitats for both functional groups are mainly concentrated in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Under future climate scenarios, broad-leaved species are in general expected to expand in marginal areas, while coniferous species show pronounced scenario dependence, with significant contractions occurring under certain scenarios and time periods. Despite the evident changes at distribution margins, the overall shifts in the centroids of potential distributions for both functional groups will be limited, with core suitable areas remaining relatively stable. This study reveals differences in the spatial response patterns between conifers and broad-leaved trees, and provides a scientific basis for the development of differentiated conservation strategies and the identification of conservation priority areas under climate change. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Taxonomy, Biogeography, Ecology, Conservation and Utilization of Gymnosperms)
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