Inventory of the Plants of Pakistan

Missouri Botanical Garden, Saint Louis MO

Investigators

Abstract

The primary objective of this project is a comprehensive inventory of the approximately 6,000 vascular plant species of Pakistan. This will be accomplished primarily by completion of the remaining family-level treatments of the published Flora of Pakistan, and all funds granted for this project are directed toward preparation of those treatments by Pakistani botanists and their international collaborators, including Pakistan's senior botanist, Dr. Syed Ali, who is co-principal investigator. Treatments of 203 families are already in print, leaving only 10 to be published. However, these include large families for the region such as Asteraceae, Cyperaceae, and Scrophulariaceae, and include an estimated 25% of all the species. Work supported with other funding will assemble the published information in a web-accessible relational database of all plant species in Pakistan. The ultimate goal of the project is a complete modern flora of a large but relatively poorly studied region of South Asia, and the first complete floristic database for the region. Completion of the Flora of Pakistan is an essential first step to understanding, managing, and preserving the biodiversity of Pakistan. Information from the project will provide scientists and government officials with critical data for resource management, including selection of areas for conservation priority and of plants for use in restorations for erosion control and reforestation.