J Syst Evol ›› 2021, Vol. 59 ›› Issue (5): 1111-1123.DOI: 10.1111/jse.12758

Special Issue: Virtual Issue to Celebrate the Legacy and Life of Professor Wen-Tsai Wang

• Research Articles • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Diversity of higher plants in China

Dan Xie1,2, Bo Liu3, Li-Na Zhao1,2, Tirtha Raj Pandey1,2,4, Hui-Yuan Liu1, Zhang-Jian Shan1,2, and Hai-Ning Qin1,2*   

  1. 1 State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
    2 College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
    3 College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing 100081, China
    4 National Herbarium and Plant Laboratories (KATH), Department of Plant Resources, Kathmandu 44700, Nepal
  • Received:2020-08-03 Accepted:2021-05-03 Online:2021-05-11 Published:2021-09-01

Abstract: The Species Catalogue of China: Volume 1: Plants (SCCP) is a new, comprehensive, hardcopy inventory of Chinese higher plants that combines several datasets and references to recent taxonomic treatments. The database, with all attached additional information, is freely accessible via the internet (http://www.sp2000.org.cn/) and on CD-ROM, and will be updated yearly. It includes bryophytes (157 families, 599 genera, and 3167 specific and infraspecific taxa), lycophytes and ferns (41 families, 181 genera, and 2336 specific and infraspecific taxa), gymnosperms (10 families, 45 genera, and 311 specific and infraspecific taxa), and angiosperms (270 families, 3227 genera, and 35 873 specific and infraspecific taxa); in total 478 families, 4052 genera, and 41 687 specific and infraspecific taxa. Several other important statistics can also be drawn from the database, such as the distribution pattern of the four major groups of higher plants, as well as number of endemic and naturalized or cultivated genera/taxa. Entries in SCCP are also compared with Flora of China, and Flora reipublicae popularis Sinicae at the genus level. The SCCP will not only be a useful reference for floristic or biodiversity studies in China, but will also serve as a key resource to direct action and monitor progress. It is intended to be a useful resource for achieving Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC).

Key words: biodiversity, China, conservation, floristic, taxonomy