Identifying gaps in the photographic record of the vascular plant flora of the Americas

Nat Plants. 2021 Aug;7(8):1010-1014. doi: 10.1038/s41477-021-00974-2. Epub 2021 Jul 29.

Abstract

Field photographs of plant species are crucial for research and conservation, but the lack of a centralized database makes them difficult to locate. We surveyed 25 online databases of field photographs and found that they harboured only about 53% of the approximately 125,000 vascular plant species of the Americas. These results reflect the urgent need for a centralized database that can both integrate and complete the photographic record of the world's flora.

MeSH terms

  • Americas
  • Biodiversity*
  • Databases, Factual / statistics & numerical data*
  • Geography / statistics & numerical data*
  • Photography / statistics & numerical data*
  • Plants*