Format: ORAL

Myriam Heuertz1, Pauline Garnier-Gr1, Juan Galindo2, Peter Galbusera3, Jos Godoy4, Carles Vil4, Sven Winter5, Katharina B. Budde6, Tsipe Aavik7, Maria Kachamakova8, Elena Bužan9, Cristiano Vernesi10, Laura D. Bertola11, Milomir Stefanovic12, Frank E. Zachos13, Christina Hvilsom14, Aleksandra Biedrzycka15, Dragana njegota16, Roberta Gargiulo17, Joukje Buiteveld18, Isa-Rita M. Russo19, Maud C. Quinzin20, Belma Kalamujic Stroil21, Barbora Roleckov22, Ivaylo N. Tsvetkov23, Craig Primmer24, Pamela Burger25, Tamer Albayrak26,Snbjrn Plsson27, Philippine Vergeer28, Sabrina Trger29,30,Malgorzata Pilot31, Julia Barth32, Margarida Fernandes Lopes33

1 BIOGECO, INRAE, Univ. Bordeaux, Cestas, France 2 Centro de Investigación Mariña, Universidade de Vigo, Facultad de Biología, Vigo, Spain 3 Centre for Research and Conservation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium 4 Estación Biológica de Donana, CSIC, Sevilla, Spain 5 Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria 6 Northwest German Forest Research Institute, Hann. Münden, Germany 7 Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia 8 Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research at Bulgarian Academy of Sciences 9 University of Primorska, Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Information Technologies, Koper, Slovenia 10 Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, Italy 11 Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark 12 Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Serbia 13 Natural History Museum Vienna, Vienna, Austria 14 Copenhagen Zoo, Copenhagen, Denmark 15 Institute of Nature Conservation, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland 16 Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, University of Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina 17 Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, United Kingdom 18 Centre for Genetic Resources, the Netherlands (CGN), Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands 19 School of Biosciences, Cardiff University 20 Independent researcher 21 University of Sarajevo-Institute for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology 22 Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic 23 Forest Research Institute, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria 24 University of Helsinki, Finland 25 Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria 26 Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University, Science and Art Faculty, Department of Biology, Turkey 27 University of Iceland, Iceland 28 Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands 29 Institut of Biology / Geobotany and Botanical Garden, Halle (Saale), Germany 30 German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany 31 Faculty of Biology, University of Gdansk, Poland 32 Zoological Institute, Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland 33 Centro em Rede de Investigação em Antropologia, Pólo da NOVA FCSH, Campus de Campolide, Lisboa, Portugal

In the context of the ongoing biodiversity and climate crises, the conservation genetics community has a strong mission to support practitioners in suggesting the most useful and applicable management actions for the conservation of biodiversity, especially genetic diversity, and its sustainable use. Practitioners may have specific and variable knowledge on the effects of hybridization on biodiversity and a variety of views on its relevance in conservation strategies. To effectively support practitioners, we took advantage of the cooperation network of COST Action G-BIKE - Genomic Biodiversity Knowledge for Resilient Ecosystems - to consult practitioners, e.g., policy makers, natural areas managers, and coordinators of species action plans, from European countries about their experience, knowledge and perceptions with regard to hybridization in conservation and its management. We identified key actors in each country and presented them with a questionnaire to fill out either autonomously or through a guided interview. We interpret the results of the questionnaire in the context of the legal framework pertaining to hybridization in nature management in Europe. Furthermore, we derive recommendations combining common practices and current research findings for the management of hybridization in the most common situations or species where it occurs, in support of the conservation of genetic diversity and biodiversity more generally.