A Catalogue of the Plants of Madagascar.ppt

A Catalogue of the Plants of Madagascar Peter B. Phillipson George E. Schatz Porter P. Lowry II Madagascar: Global Hotspot Centre of diversity (12,000? species) Centre of endemism (80, 90, 90+? species endemism) Critical human pressure on ecosystems/biodiversity Why a Catalogue? Provide set of “names in current use” Provide statistics – the “numbers game” How many endemics? Where are they located? Prioritise areas for conservation. Collate dispersed literature, and other information Stimulate research highlight gaps encourage more detailed studies as necessary (Systematics, Ecology, etc.) Framework for present and future efforts to document the flora Address targets of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC) Why now? many new treatments many new collections Urgently needed by end-users in Madagascar What will the Catalogue cover? Vascular Plants Madagascar only (not Comoros) Native species Naturalized species Modern Family alignments What will the Catalogue contain? Nomenclature and Types Synonymy Habit Habitat Distribution (Bioclimatic, Provincial, Protected Areas) Conservation Status and Rarity What will the Catalogue look like? Printed version Web-based database text maps images (Types, vouchers) link to TROPICOS data phylogeny Images on CD? + Associated series of published articles The Printed Version The Printed Version The Printed Version The Web Version ……. Peter Steven’s Angiosperm Phylogeny Web-site: Ordinal level: Malagasy Clades and Orders in red Family level: Malagasy clades and orders in red How will we produce the catalogue? Review existing taxonomic treatments – assess Taxon Recent Flora or Monograph Old Flora or Revision – new material available substantial revision required minor amendments required No revision available Revision currently in progress Worldwide Monograph African / Mascarene revision(s) available literature of individual species descriptions. How will we produce the catalogue? Capture existing “good” treatments Und