Preserving the Flora of the French overseas communities and territories, in situ and ex situ challenges

Maïté Delmas (1) , Denis Larpin (1) , Serge Muller (1)

1 MNHN - Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle

Biodiversity in Metropolitan France cannot be compared to that of the tropics but through the variety of the terrestrial and marine biomes held in its Overseas Departments, Countries and Territories (ODCT), from the Northern Boreal (Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon) to Southern Sub Antarctic (TAAF), through the tropical zones of three great oceans, it presents a remarkable biological diversity. This positions France as the most biodiverse country in Europe giving it a great responsibility. The first part of the presentation describes how France is implementing targets 1, 2, 5, and 7 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation in its ODCT. It then focuses on two French Departments of the Indian Ocean: Reunion and Mayotte, where biodiversity has been well explored. It presents the current in and ex situ conservation programs and action plans that are already in place in these two Departments. Looking more precisely at target 8, it analyzes, using the BGCI PlantSearch tool, the representativeness of the CR and EN threatened flora maintained in ex situ collections, botanical conservatories, botanical gardens and seed banks in these Departments or in other locations within or outside France. According to the latest IUCN lists, the flora of Reunion Island includes 91 taxa that are rated CR and 80 EN, and for Mayotte 36 CR and 41 EN. This study showcases the percentage of critically endangered and endangered taxa that are maintained in ex situ collections, showing where they are held and by obtaining information on the accession data of the species of special concern helps to identify what percentage could be actually used for recovery and restoration programs. When fully implemented, in Metropolitan France and in the French ODCT, the array of programs and action plans set up for the implementation of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation, the Aichi targets 12 and 15 of the Sustainable Development goals should allow to ensure the preservation of the threatened species in their natural habitats.

Mots clés: Aichi Targets; Biodiversity; In situ and Ex situ conservation; French Overseas Departments; Countries and Territories; GSPC; Protected areas; Red lists; Threatened species

Domaines: Sciences de l'environnement; Sciences du Vivant [q-bio]

Maïté Delmas, Denis Larpin, Serge Muller. Preserving the Flora of the French overseas communities and territories, in situ and ex situ challenges. 2020, Botanic Gardens, People and Plants for a Sustainable World. ⟨mnhn-03989284⟩