18% of India’s tree species face extinction

NEW DELHI: Around 18% of India’s tree species stare at the possibility of extinction, according to a new assessment published by the London-based Botanic Gardens Conservation International. India has 2,603 tree species, of which 650 are endemic or native to certain parts of the country; and 469 of them are threatened.

The Global Tree Assessment, which was undertaken over the past five years by 500 experts to compile extinction risk information for 58,497 tree species worldwide, found that 30% of tree species around the world are threatened with extinction. It also found that at least 142 tree species are already extinct in the wild. The report has warned of concerns related to ecosystem collapse globally due to increasing tree diversity loss and mass mortality of trees in certain regions.

The main threats to tree species are forest clearance for various projects; other forms of habitat loss including exploitation for timber, medicine, etc; and the spread of invasive pests and diseases. Climate crisis also has a measurable impact, the assessment warned.

In the Indo-malaya region, which covers India, 41 tree species are extinct, the highest globally compared to other regions. Around 3,819 species are threatened and 1,068 species are near threatened, among 13,739 species in the region.

Global landscape

The largest number of tree species are in the Neotropics (Central and South America , 23,631 tree species), followed by Indomalaya (tropical Asia , 13,739 species) and the Afrotropics (Africa south of the Sahara, including Madagascar, 9,237 species).

The country with highest tree diversity is Brazil with 8,847 tree species, followed by Colombia. New Zealand, Madagascar and New Caledonia (all islands) have the greatest proportion of endemic tree species with over 90% of species being found nowhere else.

Larger megadiverse countries (Brazil, China, Colombia, Indonesia, etc) have a large number of tree species and also a large number of threatened species. India’s proportion of threatened tree species is also higher than the global average of 11%.