Captive breeding of endangered aquatic plants

[mark.fisher at tpwd_state.tx.us]

     >I'm aware that there are captive breeding programs for various fish
     >species which are close to extinction due to habitat destruction etc. 
     >Do similar projects exist for aquatic-plants?
     
     Texas wild rice (Zizania texana) is an endangerd aquatic perennial 
     found only in a short stretch of the San Marcos River in central 
     Texas.  It is related to the wild rice grown for human food.
     
     The plant is endangered because of the increasing water demands on the 
     Edwards Aquifer, which during severe droughts threatens to dry up the 
     springs feeding the river.  It almost happened last year.
     
     Southwest Texas State University, in San Marcos, is working on a 
     captive breeding program where they are trying to 1) increase the 
     range of the plant, and 2) provide a reserve stock, which can be 
     reintroduced into the wild if the springs dry up.
     
     Interested parties may want to see 
     http://www.eardc.swt.edu/edwards/EndangeredSpecies.html
     
     Kind regards,
     
     Mark

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