KEY FINDINGS
Endemic Plant Species
The total number of plants that are endemic to an area is one of the two primary criteria for determining biodiversity hotspot status. To be designated as a hotspot, an area must have at least 1,500 species of endemic plants. Many hotspots exceed this number by thousands. Sundaland and the Tropical Andes, for example, each have 15,000 endemic plants. In total, hotspots hold at least 150,000 plants as endemics, representing a remarkable 50 percent of the world’s vascular plant species. This is an absolute minimum, because it does not include species that are endemic to the combined area of two or more hotspots.Another form of measurement, which is perhaps a better indicator of the importance of a particular hotspot, is the percentage of endemic plants compared to a hotspot’s total plant diversity. For example, among the 13,000 plants species found in Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands, 11,600 are endemics, a remarkable 89 percent. These data are given in each of the individual hotspot sections.Numbers of plant species occurring in and endemic to each of the 34 hotspots
| Atlantic Forest |
20,000 |
8,000 |
2.7 |
| California Floristic Province |
3,488 |
2,124 |
0.7 |
| Cape Floristic Region |
9,000 |
6,210 |
2.1 |
| Caribbean Islands |
13,000 |
6,550 |
2.2 |
| Caucasus |
6,400 |
1,600 |
0.5 |
| Cerrado |
10,000 |
4,400 |
1.5 |
| Chilean Winter Rainfall - Valdivian Forests |
3,892 |
1,957 |
0.7 |
| Coastal Forests of Eastern Africa |
4,000 |
1,750 |
0.6 |
| East Melanesian Islands |
8,000 |
3,000 |
1.0 |
| Eastern Afromontane |
7,598 |
2,356 |
0.8 |
| Guinean Forests of West Africa |
9,000 |
1,800 |
0.6 |
| Himalaya |
10,000 |
3,160 |
1.1 |
| Horn of Africa |
5,000 |
2,750 |
0.9 |
| Indo - Burma |
13,500 |
7,000 |
2.3 |
| Irano - Anatolian |
6,000 |
2,500 |
0.8 |
| Japan |
5,600 |
1,950 |
0.7 |
| Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands |
13,000 |
11,600 |
3.9 |
| Madrean Pine - Oak Woodlands |
5,300 |
3,975 |
1.3 |
| Maputaland - Pondoland - Albany |
8,100 |
1,900 |
0.6 |
| Mediterranean Basin |
22,500 |
11,700 |
3.9 |
| Mesoamerica |
17,000 |
2,941 |
1.0 |
| Mountains of Central Asia |
5,500 |
1,500 |
0.5 |
| Mountains of Southwest China |
12,000 |
3,500 |
1.2 |
| New Caledonia |
3,270 |
2,432 |
0.8 |
| New Zealand |
2,300 |
1,865 |
0.6 |
| Philippines |
9,253 |
6,091 |
2.0 |
| Polynesia - Micronesia |
5,330 |
3,074 |
1.0 |
| Southwest Australia |
5,571 |
2,948 |
1.0 |
| Succulent Karoo |
6,356 |
2,439 |
0.8 |
| Sundaland |
25,000 |
15,000 |
5.0 |
| Tropical Andes |
30,000 |
15,000 |
5.0 |
| Tumbes - Choc |
11,000 |
2,750 |
0.9 |
| Wallacea |
10,000 |
1,500 |
0.5 |
| Western Ghats and Sri Lanka |
5,916 |
3,049 |
1.0 |
| Atlantic Forest |
20,000 |
8,000 |
2.7 |
| California Floristic Province |
3,488 |
2,124 |
0.7 |
| Cape Floristic Region |
9,000 |
6,210 |
2.1 |
| Caribbean Islands |
13,000 |
6,550 |
2.2 |
| Caucasus |
6,400 |
1,600 |
0.5 |
| Cerrado |
10,000 |
4,400 |
1.5 |
| Chilean Winter Rainfall - Valdivian Forests |
3,892 |
1,957 |
0.7 |
| Coastal Forests of Eastern Africa |
4,000 |
1,750 |
0.6 |
| East Melanesian Islands |
8,000 |
3,000 |
1.0 |
| Eastern Afromontane |
7,598 |
2,356 |
0.8 |
| Guinean Forests of West Africa |
9,000 |
1,800 |
0.6 |
| Himalaya |
10,000 |
3,160 |
1.1 |
| Horn of Africa |
5,000 |
2,750 |
0.9 |
| Indo - Burma |
13,500 |
7,000 |
2.3 |
| Irano - Anatolian |
6,000 |
2,500 |
0.8 |
| Japan |
5,600 |
1,950 |
0.7 |
| Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands |
13,000 |
11,600 |
3.9 |
| Madrean Pine - Oak Woodlands |
5,300 |
3,975 |
1.3 |
| Maputaland - Pondoland - Albany |
8,100 |
1,900 |
0.6 |
| Mediterranean Basin |
22,500 |
11,700 |
3.9 |
| Mesoamerica |
17,000 |
2,941 |
1.0 |
| Mountains of Central Asia |
5,500 |
1,500 |
0.5 |
| Mountains of Southwest China |
12,000 |
3,500 |
1.2 |
| New Caledonia |
3,270 |
2,432 |
0.8 |
| New Zealand |
2,300 |
1,865 |
0.6 |
| Philippines |
9,253 |
6,091 |
2.0 |
| Polynesia - Micronesia |
5,330 |
3,074 |
1.0 |
| Southwest Australia |
5,571 |
2,948 |
1.0 |
| Succulent Karoo |
6,356 |
2,439 |
0.8 |
| Sundaland |
25,000 |
15,000 |
5.0 |
| Tropical Andes |
30,000 |
15,000 |
5.0 |
| Tumbes - Choc |
11,000 |
2,750 |
0.9 |
| Wallacea |
10,000 |
1,500 |
0.5 |
| Western Ghats and Sri Lanka |
5,916 |
3,049 |
1.0 |
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