Africa’s herbarium collections are a scientific treasure. They need to be digitised before more biodiversity is lost

By Ronell R Klopper, Extraordinary Lecturer, University of Pretoria
Hester Steyn, Plant taxonomist at the National Herbarium, South African National Biodiversity Institute
Marianne Le Roux, e-Flora Coordinator, South African National Biodiversity Institute

Universities and biodiversity institutes have hidden treasures: their collections of pressed plant specimens. These are plants that have been flattened, dried and mounted on special cardboard sheets. Some of them were collected centuries ago. They hold information about where species occur and how ecosystems changed over time.

Yet for many researchers and policymakers, that information remains invisible. The collections are filed in cabinets and the data mostly only accessible if seen in person, one specimen at a time.

This is the central challenge facing African herbaria…

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