<
https://theconversation.com/palm-trees-in-africa-are-in-decline-these-botanists-made-a-plan-to-do-something-about-it-264705>
"Palm trees grace the landscape across Africa, thriving in environments as
diverse as deserts and rainforests. Central Africa holds the richest variety,
home to 52 species, while west Africa has 38 and east Africa 18. They form part
of a global family of 2,600 palm species.
Africa is home to relatively few palm species when compared with other tropical
regions of the world. However, palms play a central role in the social and
economic life of the continent’s people. They’re consumed as food and beverages
for people and animals, used in healthcare and medicine and fashioned into
construction material. They have spiritual and cultural importance too.
Several botanical studies have placed the palm family, along with the grass and
legume families, among the most economically and culturally important plant
groups in many rural parts of the continent.
We are a group of botanists from Benin, Côte d'Ivoire and Switzerland who
collectively have decades of knowledge about Africa’s native palm diversity.
Our research aims to come up with suitable strategies for conserving the palms,
and ways for communities to use them sustainably.
At a recent African flora conference in Ghana, we launched a new pan-African
network for palm specialists from the continent to study and protect palms.
Researchers from Guinea, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Gabon, Congo, Ethiopia and
Tanzania signed up for projects related to palm biology, uses and conservation.
We officially called this new network the African Network of Palm Scientists.
The network places palms at the centre of conservation projects. This is
important because African palms are disappearing due to deforestation,
overexplotation, and human-induced habitat loss. Some, such as
Hyphaene
guineensis or
Sclerosperma profizianum, are rare. Their extinction would
harm not only ecosystems but also the people who rely on them.
The African Network of Palm Scientists therefore also aims to pool expertise,
document traditional knowledge about palms, and train the next generation of
palm experts."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
