News / Science News

    Nearly 40% of plant species are very rare, and vulnerable to climate change

    Almost 40% of global land plant species are categorized as very rare, and these species are most at risk for extinction as climate continues to change.



    Researchers mapped the global hotspots of rare plant species. Photo: Patrick R. Roehrdanz, Moore Center for Science, Conservation International Data from Enquist et al.


    "We had a good approximation of the total number of land plant species, but we didn't have a handle on how many there really are," said lead author Brian Enquist, an ecologist at the University of Arizona.

    Thirty-five researchers from institutions around the world worked for 10 years to compile 20 million observational records of the world's land plants. The result is the largest dataset on botanical biodiversity ever created.

    The researchers hope this information can help reduce loss of global biodiversity by informing conservation actions that include consideration of the effects of climate change.

    The scientists found that there are about 435,000 unique land plant species on Earth. The team revealed that 36.5% of all land plant species are "exceedingly rare": they have been observed and recorded less than five times.

    Rare species tend to cluster in a handful of hotspots, such as the Northern Andes in South America, Costa Rica, South Africa, Madagascar and Southeast Asia.

    These regions remained climatologically stable as the world emerged from the last ice age, allowing such species to persist.

    The plants had a relatively stable climate in the past, but that doesn't mean they'll have a stable future.

    The research also revealed that rare plant species hotspots are projected to experience a high rate of future climate change and human disruption. (National Science Foundation)

    DECEMBER 9, 2019



    YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

    Oxygen in the oceans is being lost at an unprecedented rate, with “dead zones” proliferating and hundreds more areas showing oxygen dangerously depleted, as a result of the climate emergency and intensive farming, experts have warned.
    A new study suggests that cell phone could be the cause of neck or head pain in people.
    Humans are being exposed to 44 times more infertility-causing and cancer-linked 'gender-bending' chemicals than previously thought, according to a new study.
    Healthy sounds played over loudspeakers can attract fish to dying reefs.
    Newly discovered brain region sheds light on processing of visual information with other sensory input.
    New research reveals how two penguin species, the gentoo and the chinstrap, have dealt with more than a century of human impacts in Antarctica, and why some species are winners and others are losers in this rapidly changing ecosystem.

    © 1991-2023 The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin | Titi Tudorancea® is a Registered Trademark | Terms of use and privacy policy
    Contact