According to a recent study, more than a thousand species of palm tree are at a greater risk of extinction.
The study was published in the journal ‘Nature Ecology and Evolution’. The results of the study provide a much clearer picture of how many different palm species are endangered.
Artificial intelligence was used by scientists to assess the risks to the entire palm family, from tall trees to climbing plants.
Official risk assessments of extinction are time-consuming and expensive, prompting the Kew-led team to look into machine learning as a tool.
According to their findings, over a thousand species – or slightly more than half among all palms – are on the brink of extinction.
The head of the study, Dr. Sidonie Bellot of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London, stated, “We must do all that is possible to safeguard biodiversity, which includes more than a thousand palm species that may be threatened.”
She stated that action was required to conserve plants on the ground and collect more data on them, which could not be done without the participation of people who live in areas where palms grow and use the palms on a daily basis.
“Palms are a large plant family that give food, water, and shelter to millions of people.”
The palm tree is a member of the cycad family, which includes many other useful plants. Palms are one of the most economically important plant families, with hundreds of wild species providing food for millions of people worldwide.
According to Dr. Rodrigo Cámara-Leret of the University of Zurich, who participated in the research and worked on the study, palms are not only the most prominent plant category in the tropics but also one of the most beneficial.
Scientists are concerned about the extinction of wild relatives of popular ornamental or commercially grown palms.
They claim that wild plants are invaluable to locals, but that they may disappear before their full potential is actually realized.
The team has designated Madagascar, New Guinea, the Philippines, Hawaii, Borneo, Jamaica, Vietnam, Vanuatu, New Caledonia and Sulawesi as priority regions for palm conservation.
According to the study, which was published in Nature Ecology and Evolution, at least 185 palm species that are used may be threatened in 92 regions, highlighting the necessity of protecting these plants.
