Saving Earth's most endangered plants from extinction is proving to be very difficult

Imagine a world where the vibrant colors and splendor of Earth’s wild plants and flowers dotting landscapes around the globe fall victim to extinction and vanish, one species at a time.

While this disturbing notion might seem far-fetched, the reality is that it’s already beginning to happen.

Plant conservation is at a critical crossroads as botanic gardens around the world struggle to protect Earth’s most endangered plants.

A recent review of the processes behind this global species preservation challenge provides scientists with details about exactly what these institutions face in their fight to save endangered and threatened plant species from extinction.

The critical question that emerges is – how can the guardian angels of our plant kingdom, botanic gardens, rise to meet this challenge?

100-years of plant conservation

The study examined records of fifty botanic gardens and arboreta around the world over the past 100 years, from 1921 to 2021.

Encompassing over 500,000 plants between them, the goal was to uncover trends and shifts in living plant collections housed at these facilities.

The study’s findings suggest that the collections at these gardens have reached their maximum capacity.

In addition, due to various limitations and rules placed on collecting wild plants in different parts of the world, acquiring and protecting diverse plant species for conservation and study has become challenging.

The research also revealed that, on a global scale, the retention of threatened plants within these collections has not been successful despite the escalating extinction risk.

It raises serious questions about the priority given to combatting biodiversity loss across these gardens.

Hurdles in saving plants from extinction

The study was spearheaded by Professor Samuel Brockington from Cambridge University Botanic Garden.

“A concerted, collaborative effort across the world’s botanic gardens is now needed to conserve a genetically diverse range of plants, and to make them available for research and future reintroduction into the wild,” Brockington implored.

The study, published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, stated that the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has considerably diminished the rate of plant collection from the wild.

This has greatly hampered the international exchange of plants.

“The impact of the Convention on Biological Diversity is a remarkable demonstration of the power and value of international agreements,” stated Professor Brockington, who is also a Professor of Evolution at the University of Cambridge’s Department of Plant Sciences.

“But it seems to be preventing individual botanic gardens from working with many globally threatened plant species that we could help save from extinction.”

Botanic garden meta-collections

Given that nearly 40% of the world’s plant diversity is at an increased risk of extinction, botanic gardens cannot single-handedly prevent species extinction.

Therefore, a collective approach is proposed to store and safeguard diversity in living collections.

Botanic gardens need to function as a ‘meta-collection,’ pooling their resources, sharing data, and expertise.

What can be done?

While individual institutions like the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh have achieved remarkable success in plant conservation, their efforts highlight both the potential and the limitations of working in isolation.

Global organizations such as Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) have made strides in promoting collaboration through conservation consortia, yet these initiatives remain exceptions rather than the standard practice.

Smaller or regionally focused botanic gardens often face resource constraints that limit their capacity for impactful conservation efforts.

Without sufficient funding, expertise, or infrastructure, their ability to participate in large-scale projects is significantly hindered.

Furthermore, the lack of robust data-sharing systems and collaboration across institutions exacerbates the challenge, preventing the formation of a cohesive global strategy.

The successes of these individual institutions and organizations serve as a foundation, but a more unified and coordinated effort is essential to effectively combat biodiversity loss on a global scale.

Climate change and plant extinction

As climate change transforms growing conditions across different regions globally, it will be more challenging for individual botanic gardens to grow a diverse range of species.

“Climate change affects our work directly by altering local weather conditions – we’ve already seen record-breaking temperatures in Cambridge in recent years,” Brockington lamented.

“That’s going to affect how well our plants survive, so we need to think rationally and collectively about the best locations to hold different species across the global network of living collections.”

Genetic diversity plays a critical role in protecting plants at risk of extinction. The more individual plants of a species are in a collection, the greater the genetic diversity is likely to be.

Where do we go from here?

Last year, Cambridge University Botanic Garden advertised for a new “Expedition Botanist” to lead global plant-collection expeditions and contribute to vital conservation efforts.

Brockington believes in the importance of these expeditions and proposes a collaborative collection approach that creates equitable international partnerships.

The CBD, signed by 150 government leaders in 1992, commits each country to protect its biodiversity and promote sustainable development.

Today, there are about 3,500 botanic gardens and arboreta worldwide, committed to studying, conserving and providing access to the world’s plants.

Organizations like the BGCI, a charity, work to mobilize botanic gardens and establish partnerships to secure plant diversity, benefiting people and the planet.

To sum it all up, we’re in a race against time for these botanic gardens to adapt, innovate and collaborate in their fight against plant extinction. The future of our plant kingdom hinges on these collective efforts.

The full study was published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.

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