Potential of Wild Species in the Scenario of Climate Change

Crop wild relatives (CWR) as an enormous source of genetic diversity for crop improvement are under great climate change pressure today, as well as from adverse effects caused by excessive exploitation, fragmentation, degradation, and loss of habitat. Ex situ conservation has been the main strategy for their protection until recently. Nowadays, more attention is paid to in situ conservation. Preservation of wild relatives in their natural environments allows the continuation of evolutionary processes and the creation of a new genetic variation capable of adapting to changing environmental conditions. This approach, besides increasing the interest for wild parents, also enables the creation of a much wider genetic basis needed to create varieties resistant to various stress situations.