EvoLunch Seminar: Aglaia Szukala (Austrian Research Center for Forests)

As global environmental challenges intensify, forests are increasingly threatened by climate change, invasive pests, and emerging diseases - making the development of effective adaptation strategies more crucial than ever. Ecological genomics offers powerful insights into the genetic diversity of tree populations, their responses to novel pathogens and climatic pressures, and the evolutionary mechanisms that may enable future adaptation. In this talk, I will present two case studies showing how genomic research can guide policy and forestry practices to enhance the resilience of tree species and forest ecosystems in the near future.In the first study, we explore the genetic basis of ash tolerance to the invasive fungus responsible for ash dieback. By growing over 35,000 progenies of tolerant mother trees in a common garden and conducting both genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and genotype-environment associations (GEA) analyses, we assess whether specific sets of genetic markers can guide forestry decisions—such as enhancing pathogen resistance through marker-assisted selection, identifying suitable provenances for planting and pinpointing forest areas that should be prioritized for conservation. The second study focuses on hybridisation within the white oak species complex, examining how this process shapes species boundaries, genetic diversity, and local adaptation. By highlighting the role of genetic introgression in promoting adaptation and diversity, we can integrate this evolutionary process into management and conservation strategies.