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TA = Tropical Africa Area (EPFAT Area, country-based, south of the Sahara, complementary to the following)
SA = Southern Africa Area (South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland)
NA = North Africa (Mauritania, Morocco, Canary Isl., Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Madeira)
MA = Madagascar (Malagasy Republic)
Statistics about plants names and species
The database currently comprises 188996 names with 89738 accepted .
Number of accepted species are:
27720 species for TA area (including introduced species)
19174 species for SA area (including introduced species)
6824 species for NA (including Macaronesia).
10966 species for MA area (including introduced species)
Origin of data, updates
- For TA, only part of ecological and distribution data are currently available, corresponding to the families published in the 1-4 volumes of Lebrun
& Stork's "Tropical African Flowering Plants: Ecology and Distribution". Information from future volumes will be incorporated as they
are published.
- For SA, all ecology and distribution data are available.
- For NA, biological information on species is not currently available, but will be incorpored later.
- For MA, core data is provided and updated regulary from Madagascar Catalogue, users are invited to consult
this online for the most up-to-date information, distribution maps and images.
- List of Families with recent update
Incorporation of species from the Guinean Gulf islands (Sao Tomé, Bioko, Annobon, Principe) is in process, in collaboration with Lisbon Botanical
Garden. Incorporation of data from Cape Verde and the East African Islands (Zanzibar, Socotra) is planned.
Data will be updated on a regular basis, following the literature. Any missing information or corrections are most welcome (see front page
for contact info).
The main floras of continental Africa and Madagascar
Madagascar data:
The Flore de Madagascar et des Comores series, published by the Paris Museum has treated 165 of the 222 traditionally recognised plant families (75%)
in Madagascar. The first part, Aponogetonaceae, appeared in 1936, and most of the other published volumes appeared during the
following 30 years. Full or partial taxonomic treatments for genera in some of the outstanding families have been published subsequently elsewhere
(notably in the journal Adansonia) and also some excellent detailed monographs (such as for the legumes and palms) are available.
Our knowledge of the flora of Madagascar is thus advancing steadily. However, many of the treatments in earlier volumes are now badly outdated and
are of little use today and some genera has never been treated and so many are in urgent need of taxonomic revision.
The Catalogue of Vascular Plants of Madagascar represents a synthesis of published data on the flora of Madagascar and an analysis of the current status
of the taxonomy of every genus and an estimate of the number of undescribed species. It comprises a browseable and searchable database, freely available online
(http://www.efloras.org/madagascar), that includes taxonomic data, images, vernacular names and conservation status
for vascular plants occurring naturally in Madagascar. A printed catalogue is envisaged.
Accepted standards names /Discrepancies
SPELLING OF NAMES
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Genera: "Index Nominum Genericorum" ING (Farr et al. 1979, 1986) is accepted as standard.
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Epithets: we refer to the original publication, and apply IBC if necessary.
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Authors: "Authors of plant names" (Brummitt & Powel, 1992) is accepted as standard. Discrepancies often arise because of different
origins of the data. Consulting the original publication or simply applying the nomenclatural code helped to solve these discrepancies. Most of the
remaining discrepancies originated from the interpretation of "ex" in authors.
TAXONOMIC PROBLEMS
Family concept, attribution of genera to families. We primarily decided to follow the family circumscription of "Vascular Plants
Families and Genera" (Brummitt, 1992). Following subsequent works at family level, discrepancies arose between FSA and EPFAT. If no consensus could
be reached, both views are presented. [MADCAT according to APGIII]
Generic concept, attribution of species to genera, synonyms: Since all four lists rely on treatments that are often limited
geographically, it is clear that in several cases of shared taxa, there is no general consensus on which name is current, and which is a synonym.
The present work does not pretend to solve these discrepancies, and the outputs are designed to reflect diverging taxonomic views in parallel,
pointing out areas for future taxonomic research.
Infraspecific level. There is only one (optional) infraspecific level, which can be either subspecies, variety, subvariety or forma.
Nevertheless, merging the four lists has also revealed an immense area of discrepancies at the infraspecific level.
These include:
• Species subdivided into infraspecifics in one list, but not in the other.
• Species subdivided at a different level, e.g. subspecies vs. varieties.
Once more, the outputs are designed to present both views, waiting for a future taxonomic treatment to solve these issues.
For NA, the status of variety is usually not mentioned; in many cases it needs more study. All these varieties are
linked to the upper infraspecific level or to the species.
Distribution maps
Point-data for distribution maps come from four distinct sources:
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For the TA area, data are extracted from the maps published in Lebrun & Stork's "Tropical African Flowering Plants: Ecology
and Distribution". The dots on these original maps correspond mainly to citation of species in the literature. The reference maps are 6 x
6 cm, thus precision of these dots is roughly +/- 2° latitude and longitude. Accordingly, we represent these points by a large dot. No map is
available at infraspecific level!
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For the SA area, data are mainly extracted from the PRECIS database and represent herbarium collections, databased on grids of
quarter-degree squares (approximately 25 x 25 km). Dots are generally more numerous and more precise in location than fir TA. We represent
them using a smaller dot.
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For the NA area, data are extracted from Dobignard checklist based on North African floras. Dots correspond to presence in
a country. We present them with the letter P.
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For the MA area, we display only presence by a symbol. Detailed distribution data can be obtained from the
Madagascar Catalogue for every species [link to: www.efloras.org/madagascar]
Points are projected on a base map representing the main phytogeographical units of White (White 1983, simplified) using different colours, with
country boundaries as black solid black lines. Grey areas are outside the scope of this project.
| Map of the main phytogeographical units (following White 1983, simplified) |
Boundaries of the three areas and example of distribution map (Cleome gynandra L. ) |
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| Map of African countries |
Map of Southern African countries (and provinces for South Africa) |
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South African provinces: WC: Western Cape, EC: Eastern Cape, NC: Northern Cape, FS: Free State, LIM: Limpopo, MP: Mpumalanga, KN:
KwaZulu-Natal, GA: Gauteng, NW: North-West. |
Publications:
- Klopper, R., L. Gautier, C. Chatelain, Smith, G. and R. Spichiger. (2007). Floristics of the angiosperm
flora of Sub-Saharan Africa: an analysis of the African Plant Checklist and Database. Taxon 56: 201-208.
- Klopper, R., C. Chatelain, V. Banninger, C. Habashi, H.M. Steyn, C. de Wet, T.H. Arnold, L. Gautier, G.F. Smith & R. Spichiger
(2006). Checklist of the flowering plants of Sub-Saharan Africa. An index of accepted names and synonyms. SABONET Report No. 42, Pretoria 900
pp.
- Lebrun J.-P. & A. Stork (2003). Tropical african Flowering plants. Ecology and distribution. vol.1 Annonaceae-Balanitaceae.
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève. hors série 9.,793 pp.
- Lebrun J.-P. & A. Stork (2006). Tropical african Flowering plants. Ecology and distribution. vol.2 Euphorbiaceae-Dichapetalaceae.
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève. hors série 9a., 306 pp.
- Lebrun J.-P. & A. Stork (2008). Tropical african Flowering plants. Ecology and distribution. vol.3 Mimosaceae-Fabaceae.
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève. hors série., 325 pp.
- Lebrun J.-P. & A. Stork (2008). Tropical african Flowering plants. Ecology and distribution. vol.4 Fabaceae (desmodium-Zornia).
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève. hors série., 291 pp.
- Phillipson, P.B., G.E. Schatz, P.P. Lowry II & J.-N. Labat 2006. A catalogue of the vascular plants of Madagascar pp. 613-627.
In: S.A. Ghazanfar & H.J. Beentje (eds) 2006. Taxonomy and Ecology of African Plants, their Conservation and Sustainable Use.
Proceedings of the 17th AETFAT Congress, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Royal Botanic Gardens Kew.
- Dobignard, A. & C. Chatelain (2010). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du Nord. Vol.1, Pterydophyta, Gymnospermae, Monocotyledoneae.
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève, hors-série 11.
- Dobignard, A. & C. Chatelain (2011). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du Nord. Vol.2, Dicotyledonae, Acanthaceae à Asteraceae.
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève, hors-série 11a.
- Dobignard, A. & C. Chatelain (2011). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du Nord. Vol.3, Dicotyledonae, Balsaminaceae à Euphorbiaceae.
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève, hors-série 11b.
- Lebrun J.-P. & A. Stork (2011). Tropical african Flowering plants. Ecology and distribution. vol.6 Burseraceae-Apiaceae and Addendum vol.1.
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève. hors série.
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Checklist of sub-saharan Africa was published by SANBI
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