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The Philippines is one of the world's most biodiverse nations, with up to 4000+ plant species per 10,000 km². In comparison, the most biodiverse regions of the U.S. have 3000 plant species per 10,000 km². Situated at the intersection of the Indo-Chinese, Malesian, and Oceanic floristic regions, the Philippines is a megadiverse botanical crossroad, linking the floras of Northern Asia, Southeast Asia, the Malay Archipelago, Australia, and the Pacific. Ecosystems range from mangroves along the coast to high mountain peaks, with the topographic heterogeneity of the Philippines giving rise to exceptionally high rates of species endemism (40-60%). Within the Philippine archipelago, groups of islands form biologically unique subregions, making the density of unique species and ecosystems almost without parallel. As in many tropical regions, the biodiversity of the Philippines faces threats from development, mining, logging, and fire, yet new species continue to be described from the region. Digitization of herbarium specimens makes data available to help describe new species and construct conservation strategies to protect what remains.

This project is supported by NSF awards 2100755 and 2001354.

References:

Barthlott, W., J. Mutke, D. Rafiqpoor, G. Kier, and H. Kreft. 2005. Global Centers of Vascular Plant Diversity. Nova Acta Leopoldina, 92: 61-83.