[RWG] NEWS: Hidden in Plain Sight: U.S. Plants Need Additional Protection, New Report Finds

[Olivia Kwong]

http://www.natureserve.org/publications/hidden_plain_sight.jsp

NATURESERVE PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Rob Riordan, NatureServe / 703-908-1831
e-mail: rob_riordan at natureserve.org

April 4, 2008
For Immediate Release

U.S. Plants Need Additional Protection, New Report Finds
Few State Wildlife Action Plans Address Needs of Threatened Flora

Arlington, Virginia -- A thorough study of how plants are treated in state 
wildlife action plans finds that, while the plans represent a major step 
forward for conservation planning, most of the action plans did not 
attempt to address the conservation needs of plants.

The analysis, contained in a new report titled Hidden in Plain Sight: the 
Role of Plants in State Wildlife Action Plans, was carried out by 
NatureServe, a non-profit conservation group that provides science to 
inform effective conservation action.

Completed in 2005 by all U.S. states and territories, wildlife action 
plans are designed to guide wildlife conservation efforts and prevent 
wildlife from becoming endangered. Developed based on the best available 
scientific information and with broad public engagement, these plans are 
increasingly important in a wide variety of conservation and planning 
efforts.

Because the federal guidelines governing development of these plans 
specifically excluded plants from the definition of "wildlife" and did not 
provide funding to study them, few states were able to consider rare or 
endangered plants in their planning process. However, plants are essential 
to the functioning of healthy ecosystems, and represent more than half 
(56%) of species federally listed as threatened or endangered.

"State wildlife action plans represent a tremendous opportunity for 
strategically advancing conservation in America," said Bruce Stein, chief 
scientist for NatureServe and a co-author of the study. "Now is the time 
to complement the attention they have brought to wild animals with 
additional focus on the needs of our nation's imperiled plants."

The study found that only a modest number of wildlife action plans 
explicitly considered plant species of conservation concern. Just eight of 
56 plans (14%) took the most direct approach of including plants on their 
list of "species of greatest conservation need," while only six plans 
(11%) considered plant species of concern in their methods for setting 
habitat priorities. Twelve plans (21%) included plant species of concern 
in their approaches for defining geographic focal areas, generally relying 
on plant data maintained by state natural heritage programs. The study 
found that wildlife action plans for Georgia, Missouri, Nebraska, and 
Oregon were especially effective at addressing the needs of wild plant 
species.

The study makes several recommendations for better conserving the nation.s 
plant life:
- Promote wildlife action plan implementation strategies that would also 
benefit plant species of concern.
- Avoid implementation actions that could be detrimental to sensitive 
plant species.
- Add plant-specific components to existing wildlife action plans where 
possible.
- Develop state-level plant conservation strategies to complement wildlife 
action plans where necessary.
- Ensure that plants are fully represented in major new conservation 
funding opportunities, including those related to climate change 
adaptation.

Hidden in Plain Sight was authored by Dr. Bruce A. Stein and NatureServe 
botanist Kelly Gravuer, and was supported by the Doris Duke Charitable 
Foundation. The report can be accessed at 
http://www.natureserve.org/publications/library.jsp#nspubs.

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NatureServe is a non-profit conservation group dedicated to providing the 
scientific basis for effective conservation action. Representing a network 
of 80 natural heritage programs and conservation data centers in the 
United States, Canada, and Latin America, NatureServe is a leading source 
for detailed