Researchers involved in cataloguing the world's plant species are hunting for answers as to what makes some groups of plants so successful. One of their major goals is to predict more accurately which lineages of flowering plants -- some of which are of huge importance to people and to ecosystems -- are at a greater risk from global climate change.
The"big plant genera" form a significant proportion of both global and Irish plant diversity, and are of disproportionate importance for both human nutrition and planetary health. Roughly one in four flowering plant species is a member of one of these. Dr Peter Moonlight, Assistant Professor in Trinity's School of Natural Sciences, led the just-published study. He said:"Until recently, big plant genera were seen as too large to study. But a recent revolution in methods in plant science and the development of global, collaborative networks has allowed us to update our understanding of plant evolution and global plant diversity.
In collaboration with his co-authors from the Natural History Museum in London, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden, Dr Moonlight will be leading a symposium at the International Botanical Congress in Madrid this summer.Increasing urbanization worldwide is a growing threat to biodiversity. At the same time, flowering plants are often more diverse in cities than in the countryside. This is due to flowering plants and ...