41 p.[EN] China is one of the richest countries in plant biodiversity in the world. Besides to a rich
flora, which contains about 33 000 vascular plants (being 30 000 of these angiosperms, 250
gymnosperms, and 2 600 pteridophytes), there is a extraordinary ecosystem diversity. In
addition, China also contains a large pool of both wild and cultivated germplasm; one of
the eight original centers of crop plants in the world was located there. China is also considered
one of the main centers of origin and diversification for seed plants on Earth, and
it is specially profuse in phylogenetically primitive taxa and/or paleoendemics due to the
glaciation refuge role played by this area in the Quaternary. The collision of Indian subcontinent
enriched significantly the Chinese flora and produced the formation of many neoendemisms.
However, the distribution of the flora is uneven, and some local floristic hotspots
can be found across China, such as Yunnan, Sichuan and Taiwan. Unfortunately, threats
to this biodiversity are huge and have increased substantially in the last 50 years. The combined
effects of habitat destruction and/or fragmentation, environmental contamination, overexploitation
of natural resources and, in lower extent, introduction of exotic species, have
produced an irremediable damage to plant biodiversity; furthermore, the economic and population
growth have contributed to this deterioration. Currently it is considered that up to
5 000 species of flora are endangered in China, and some taxa have already become extinct.
Although government authorities have done some efforts in order to preserve biodiversity
in recent years, there is still a lot of work to do. China has established a extense
network of nature reserves and protected areas, covering more than 16% of the total land
area; nevertheless, lack of budget and staff are common trends in their management. Ex
situ conservation is still also deficient, primarily due to botanical gardens are not representative
of the several local floras and they often have not adequate sizes and amount of
species. The lack of an efficient environmental legislation and education are also root causes
which enhance the loss of Chinese plant biodiversity.Peer reviewe
