Photographs as an essential biodiversity resource : drivers of gaps in the vascular plant photographic record

© 2023 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2023 New Phytologist Foundation.

Bibliographische Detailangaben
Veröffentlicht in:The New phytologist. - 1979. - 238(2023), 4 vom: 28. Mai, Seite 1685-1694
1. Verfasser: Mesaglio, Thomas (VerfasserIn)
Weitere Verfasser: Sauquet, Hervé, Coleman, David, Wenk, Elizabeth, Cornwell, William K
Format: Online-Aufsatz
Sprache:English
Veröffentlicht: 2023
Zugriff auf das übergeordnete Werk:The New phytologist
Schlagworte:Journal Article citizen science community science identification photographic voucher unphotographed vascular plants
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:© 2023 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2023 New Phytologist Foundation.
The photographic record is increasingly becoming an important biodiversity resource for primary research and conservation monitoring. However, globally, there are important gaps in this record even in relatively well-researched floras. To quantify the gaps in the Australian native vascular plant photographic record, we systematically surveyed 33 sources of well-curated species photographs, assembling a list of species with accessible and verifiable photographs, as well as the species for which this search failed. Of 21 077 Australian native species, 3715 lack a verifiable photograph across our 33 surveyed resources. There are three major geographic hotspots of unphotographed species in Australia, all far from current population centres. Many unphotographed species are small in stature or uncharismatic, and many are also recently described. The large number of recently described species without accessible photographs was surprising. There are longstanding efforts in Australia to organise the plant photographic record, but in the absence of a global consensus to treat photographs as an essential biodiversity resource, this has not become common practice. Many recently described species are small-range endemics and some have special conservation status. Completing the botanical photographic record across the globe will facilitate a virtuous feedback loop of more efficient identification, monitoring and conservation
Beschreibung:Date Completed 14.04.2023
Date Revised 21.04.2023
published: Print-Electronic
Citation Status MEDLINE
ISSN:1469-8137
DOI:10.1111/nph.18813