Global research on ultramafic (serpentine) ecosystems (8th International Conference on Serpentine Ecology in Sabah, Malaysia)
Antony van der Ent A H , Nishanta Rajakaruna B C , Robert Boyd D , Guillaume Echevarria E , Rimi Repin F and Dick Williams GA Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation, Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland, QLD, Australia.
B College of the Atlantic, 105 Eden Street, Bar Harbor, ME 04609, USA.
C Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom, 2520, South Africa.
D Department of Biological Sciences 101 Rouse Life Sciences Bldg. Auburn University, Alabama 36849, USA.
E Laboratoire Sols et Environnement, UMR 1120, Université de Lorraine – INRA, France.
F Sabah Parks KK Times Square, Coastal Highway, 88100 Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.
G Australian Journal of Botany, CSIRO Tropical Ecosystems Research Centre, Australia.
H Corresponding author. Email: a.vanderent@uq.edu.au
Australian Journal of Botany 63(4) iii-iv https://doi.org/10.1071/BTv63n4_IN
Published: 25 June 2015
Abstract
Since 1991, researchers from approximately 45 nations have participated in eight International Conferences on Serpentine Ecology (ICSE). The ICSE conferences are coordinated by the International Serpentine Ecology Society (ISES), a formal research society whose members study geological, pedological, biological and applied aspects of ultramafic ecosystems worldwide. These conferences have provided an international forum to discuss and synthesise multidisciplinary research, and have provided opportunities for scientists in distinct fields and from different regions of the world to conduct collaborative and interdisciplinary research. The 8th ICSE was hosted by Sabah Parks in Malaysia, on the island of Borneo, and attracted the largest delegation to date, 174 participants from 31 countries. This was the first time an ICSE was held in Asia, the region that hosts some of the world’s most biodiverse ultramafic ecosystems. The presentations provided a cross-section of the current status of research in all aspects of serpentine-biota relations. In this Special Issue of Australian Journal of Botany, which encompasses two double issues (1–2 and 3–4), we have compiled a selection of papers from among the oral and poster presentations to provide insights into recent advances in geoecological and applied studies of serpentine habitats worldwide.
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