ENDEMIC FLORA OF THE CARPATHIANS: THE IMPORTANCE OF DIGITALLY INTEGRATING SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION OF MAJOR CARPATHIAN REGION HERBARIA

Abstract

The Carpathian Region is recognised as one of the most biodiverse regions of Europe, encompassing both a high global plant species richness and a high number of endemics. However, distribution data residing from old herbarium collections is often hard to access, although the information is relevant for a wider audience of researchers going beyond the single-country level. Here we aim to review the major role of herbarium collections in holding relevant information for the distribution of CR endemic plant taxa and the importance of herbarium digitization as both a more straightforward and non-invasive method of herbarium data visualization, investigation and data sharing within the CR and a tool for increasing the scientific knowledge in plant conservation strategies. We present an overview of the endemic taxa type specimen distribution among few selected major herbaria and the country-level spatial structure of endemic taxa specimens preserved in several of these herbaria in order to highlight the relevance of herbarium collections for researchers from other countries.