FLORISTICS IN LATIN-AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN - AN EVALUATION OF THE NUMBERS OF PLANT COLLECTIONS AND BOTANISTS

This paper evaluates the present size of plant collections and the num ber of botanists in the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, the region with the highest plant diversity in the world. Statistics r eveal that collection density is adequate for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, while South America, with the exception of Chile an d Argentina, is undercollected. Argentina hosts the highest number of botanists while all other countries appear to need more plant taxonomi sts to perform floristic inventories. The differences in absolute numb ers of specimens and botanists between the three largest countries (Ar gentina, Brazil and Mexico) and the other countries in the area are re markable, reflecting an unbalance in the development of local botanica l science.