The U.S. National Herbarium at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. (IMAGE)
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The museum’s collection of 145 million natural history specimens and objects is a tremendous scientific resource to researchers who study how people are rapidly shaping the future of life on Earth. The U.S. National Herbarium includes more than 5 million plant specimens and records, many of which have been referenced and studied to analyze and categorize which plants are likely to be winners and losers. Information on location, habitat and local uses associated with the specimens are invaluable to scientists in order to understand the past, present and possible future of plant species on the planet. A new analysis spanning more than 86,000 plant species from John Kress, botany curator emeritus at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, and Gary Krupnick, head of the museum’s plant conservation unit, finds that on this human-dominated planet, many more species of plants are poised to “lose” rather than “win.” The study was published today, March 10, in the journal Plants, People, Planet.
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Chip Clark, Smithsonian.
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