Botanical Monography in the Anthropocene

Hundreds of nuclear and plastid loci yield novel insights into orchid relationships

“…Understanding plant relationships is essential to enable the interpretation of their extraordinary diversity (e.g., Chase et al, 1993; Eiserhardt et al, 2018; Smith and Brown, 2018; Grace et al, 2021). By including representatives of nearly all major taxa, phylogenetic trees inferred from the analysis of mostly organellar loci have provided a robust set of relationships for a multitude of higher‐order lineages.…”

Framing the future for taxonomic monography: Improving recognition, support, and access

“…Nonetheless, we must acknowledge how the historic and ongoing role of colonialism and racism within our own institutions exerts significant influence on the practice of monographic work, limiting this practice to those with access to global resources, and to the detriment of the field. While most resources, including comprehensive scientific collections and historical literature, are located in the global north, the most critical need for monographs is in the global south, where species diversity is the most rich yet remains relatively underdocumented in the scientific literature when compared to the global north (Grace et al, 2021). Threats to biodiversity are higher in the global south as well, making the case for monography in these areas even more salient (Tilman et al, 2017).…”

“…This is of particular concern for organisms that are threatened with extinction, of medical or economic importance, and those organisms that have the potential to provide insight into biodiversity change over time because they are most susceptible to global change. In discussing the future of collections-based systematics, researchers have highlighted the importance of updated monographic workflows, collaborative teams, and effective ways to educate and disseminate the results of monographs to the public and scientific community (e.g., Wen et al, 2015;Grace et al, 2021). Here, we discuss how improving recognition, support, and access can lead to greater inclusivity while promoting a more active, sustainable, and collaborative outlook for monographic research.…”

Is the demise of plant taxonomy in sight? Maybe yes, maybe no…

“…Linking a name to an organism (a plant for example), is not a specious exercise but implies an epistemological process that makes any name verifiable anytime allowing to standardize the assessment of biodiversity. Taxonomic plant checklists, floras and monographs are produced with verified names and associated vouchers supporting species' identity by experts in the field (Grace et al 2021). In other words, taxonomy (and nomenclature) are key components of biology (Costello 2020) and species are the currency of biodiversity (Sigwart et al 2018), which and in conjunction with monographs disseminate scientific information to accelerate research (Grace et al 2021).…”

“…In summary, we should be mindful that in the light of climate change and unparalleled anthropogenic changes, the current biodiversity crisis needs urgent attention to classify, name, and identify the remaining biological diversity in order to cover with intellectual competence knowledge gaps, especially in plant taxonomy (Aedo et al 2017). It is only with coordinated efforts among plant and animal taxonomists, academic institutions, industries and governments that this traditional but essential scientific field will reemerge as an ultimate resource, including the rediscovery of the value of botanical monographies (Grace et al 2021), to catalogue those unknown species waiting to be described in the lingering pristine terrestrial and marine ecosystems of the Earth.…”