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Plant Taxonomy and Biodiversity Researches in Bangladesh:trends and Opportunities

M. Atiqur Rahman
Department of Botany, University of Chittagong Chittagong 4331, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

The progress, problems and prospects of biodiversity and plant taxonomic researches conducted in Bangladesh during the last two decades have been analyzed. The inventory of the flora, threatened taxa and family wise itemization in all groups of plants are progressing at a very slow rate. Only 11.6% of the estimated species (c.5000) were inventoried and only 6.2% of the threatened taxa were listed for conservation management. National Conservation Strategies could not be framed and implemented duly for environmental management. Results of the survey of floristic diversity, inventory of threatened taxa for Red Data Book and discovery of new taxa are discussed and up to date data are presented.

Keywords: Biodiversity, Inventory, Taxonomy, Threatened taxa, Conservation management

Location: Sylhet, Chittagong, Chittagong Hill Tracts, Cox's Bazar, Sundarbans, Noakhali, Feni valley, Dhaka, Jessore, Dinajpur

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Conservation and Biodiversity

Commodity: Plant

Objectives:

There had been also a few independent published reports of taxonomic and floristic works on the flora until independence of Pakistan in 1947. These are: List of Plants of Chittagong Collectorate and the Hill Tracts by Heinig (1925); The Flora of Chakaria Sundarbans by Cowan (1926), The trees of Northern Bengal including shrubs, woody climbers, bamboos, palms and tree ferns by Cowan and Cowan (1929) and On the flora of Chittagong by Raizada (1941).

Methodology:

The flora of Bangladesh was previously known as the flora of the then East Pakistan until its independence in 1971. The flora within the territory of presently formed Bangladesh was the part of undivided Bengal, and the vegetation was explored initially by William Roxburgh, the father of Indian Botany, since his appointment as the Superintendent of the then East Indian Company's Museum and Botanic Garden at Calcutta in 1773. Among his successors, a number of British and Dutch pioneer explorers, like F.B. Hamilton, N Wallich, J.D. Hooker, T. Thomson, C.B. Clarke, S.G. King, W. Griffith, J. Leister, W.S. Kurz, J.S. Gamble, D. Prain, R.L. Heinig, J.M. Cowan, M.B. Raizada and others have made extensive survey and collections from Sylhet, Chittagong, Chittagong Hill Tracts, Cox's Bazar, Sundarbans, Noakhali, Feni valley, Dhaka, Jessore, Dinajpur and other areas of Bengal. Some of the noteworthy contributions of that period are Hortus Bangalensis (Roxburgh, 1814), Flora Indica (Roxburgh, 1832), A Numerical list of dried specimens of plants in the East Indian Company’s Museum (Wallich, 1828-49), The flora of British India (Hooker, 1872-1897), Bengal Plants (Prain, 1903a) and The Flora of Sundarbans (Prain, 1903b).

Source of Information: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENT Volume-3, Issue-2, Mar-May 2014 ISSN 2091-2854

Article Link (Online Journal):

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

It is revealed from the evaluation of trends of taxonomic research, determination of problems and prospects in the progress of inventory of the flora and analysis of the activities of Bangladesh National Herbarium and Bangladesh Association of Plant Taxonomists that the Bangladesh is experiencing a bit serious crisis and difficulties in the development of taxonomic research in all groups of plants due to some acute obstacles, such as, lack of trained and experienced taxonomists; lack of adequate fund and facilities; lack of interest and job facilities; inadequate scholarships and overseas training support for higher studies in taxonomy; insufficient networking of the Herbarium (BNH) and Association (BAPT) to attract foreign donors and foreign partners to carry out Flora Project like Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia; lack of initiatives to create training facilities and collaborative taxonomic research projects; ignorance of the appropriate authority of the Government about the importance of taxonomic research in the discovery of plant wealth and its conservation for sustainability of the environment.

Knowledge Management: Journal