TAGRA 2025

The preservation of genetic diversity is fundamental to effective biodiversity research, conservation planning, and long-term ecosystem management. Türkiye, situated at the junction of major biogeographic regions and home to rich terrestrial, freshwater, and marine biota, remains underrepresented in global biodiversity and genomic datasets. Recent international analyses highlight large “biodiversity blindspots”, areas where species are present but missing from digitized records due to inadequate specimen archiving or the absence of coordinated genetic repositories. These gaps hinder accurate species assessments, limit the resolution of ecological monitoring tools, and reduce the reliability of conservation decision-making. Establishing a National GenBank for Türkiye would address these limitations by providing a centralized, long-term repository for DNA, tissues, seeds, gametes, and high-quality genomic reference material across taxonomic groups.
A national genbank would function as a scientific and conservation infrastructure that (i) preserves genetic diversity threatened by climate change, habitat degradation, overexploitation, invasive species, and emerging diseases; (ii) supports taxonomic and genomic research by enabling reliable species identification and the development of high-resolution reference libraries for tools such as eDNA metabarcoding; (iii) enhances the quality and reproducibility of biodiversity monitoring programs, including BRUV, UVC, fisheries assessments, and long-term ecological surveys, by linking observational data with verified genetic material; and (iv) strengthens restoration, aquaculture improvement, and species recovery efforts through access to well-curated, traceable biological samples.