REE, RICHARD H.*, MICHAEL J. DONOGHUE, AND DAVID E. BOUFFORD. Harvard University Herbaria, 22 Divinity Ave., Cambridge, MA 02138. - Plant diversity of the Hengduan Mountain region of China.
The Hengduan Mountains, located east of the Himalayan range, form a
dramatic series of north-south trending valleys and ridges extending
from 1000 to over 7000 meters in elevation. This region and the
surrounding area may contain as much as 40% of China's plant
diversity, and is especially rich in endemic species. Several groups
are extraordinarily diverse in the region, including
Rhododendron, Saussurea, Cremanthodium,
Gentiana, and Primula. For these reasons, and owing to
ecological pressures imposed by human activity, this region is
considered one of 24 biodiversity hotspots worldwide, and one of only
three in the north temperate zone. Our recent NSF-sponsored
(DEB-9705795) expeditions to the Hengduan region have yielded over
seven thousand collections of macrofungi, bryophytes, and vascular
plants. A database of information on these specimens, including
elevation and GPS-based coordinate data, habitat information, field
observations, images, and tissue available for DNA and anatomical
analyses, is now available via the Harvard University Herbaria web
site (http://www.herbaria.harvard.edu). Specimens collected on these
expeditions have enabled detailed study of several groups that are
particularly diverse in this region, including discomycete fungi,
Dipsacales, Brassicaceae, Corydalis, and
Pedicularis.
Key words: biodiversity, bryophytes, China, fungi, plants