IUCN resolution 079: Linking in situ and ex situ efforts to save threatened species

As of February 2020, 73 species were considered Extinct in the Wild, and 6,413 were classified as Critically Endangered on the 2019 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The status of a number of these species is in part due to a failure to intervene with emergency action early enough in their decline, as preventing extinction is more likely when efforts are initiated before a species is reduced to a small number of individuals.

The Species Survival Commission’s (SSC) adoption of the One Plan Approach and the provision of technical advice summarised in IUCN Species Survival Commission Guidelines on the Use of Ex situ Management for Species Conservation, encourage deliberative science-based processes of action-plan development by all responsible parties for all populations of a species across the spectrum of management, and provide practical guidance on evaluating the suitability and requirements of an ex situ component for achieving species-conservation objectives, among others.

In 2020, the IUCN World Conservation Congress passed a resolution promoting the integration of in situ (within a species’ natural habitat) and ex situ (in human care outside a species’ natural habitat) conservation interventions by applying the One Plan Approach.

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The World Flora Online: An Online Flora of All Known Plants

In 2010, the updated Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC) of the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity included as its first target (Target 1) the need for ‘An online flora of all known plants.’ With this background in mind, in January 2012 in St Louis, Missouri, U.S.A., representatives from four institutions: the Missouri Botanical Garden, the New York Botanical Garden, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (all members of the Global Partnership for Plant Conservation, GPPC) took the initiative to meet and discuss how to achieve GSPC Target 1 by 2020. The meeting resulted in a proposed outline of the scope and content of a World Flora Online (WFO), as well as a decision to form an international consortium of institutions and organisations to collaborate on providing that content.

The WFO project was subsequently launched in India, at an event held during the 11th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in October 2012 where the COP also adopted a decision welcoming the WFO initiative. In January 2013 a Memorandum of Understanding on the WFO was opened for signature. Up to the end of March 2023, 51 institutions and organisations had signed the MOU.

The WFO is an open-access, Web-based compendium of the world’s plant species. It is a collaborative, international project, building upon existing knowledge and published Floras, checklists and revisions but will also require the collection and generation of new information on poorly know plant groups and plants in unexplored regions.

The project represents a major step forward in developing a consolidated global information service on the world’s flora.

The Global Conservation Consortia (GCC)

The Global Conservation Consortia (GCC) aim to mobilise a coordinated network of institutions and experts to collaboratively develop and implement comprehensive conservation strategies for priority threatened plant groups.

Our mission is to accelerate effective conservation of global plant diversity. Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) is coordinating a suite of Global Conservation Consortia, which catalyse groups of institutions and experts to collaboratively develop and implement comprehensive strategies to prevent extinction of priority threatened plant groups. Primary objectives include coordinated in situ and ex situ conservation efforts and dissemination of species recovery knowledge.

PlantShare

Do you have surplus plant material you would like to back-up or share with other botanical gardens?

PlantShare facilitates the exchange of living plant material (cuttings, seeds, whole plants, pollen, etc.) between botanic gardens, to facilitate backing up of important collections, share material between institutions, and use valuable material for conservation purposes.

Data contained in PlantShare is provided and managed by bona fide institutions that participate in GardenSearch. BGCI encourages responsible exchange of plant material.

PlantShare features include:

search and filter facilities such as: scientific name, family, garden, accession details or compliance regulations
ability to set expiration date per listing
bulk upload function and checks for data standards and default values
taxon names checked against references
message mechanisms between donor and requesting gardens
the ability to create a request list with more than one person in your organisation

PlantSearch

BGCI’s PlantSearch is a globally unique tool for accessing and sharing information about living collections maintained by botanic gardens and similar organisations. PlantSearch connects living botanical collections to conservationists, educators, horticulturists, researchers, policy makers and many others who are working to save and understand plant diversity.

PlantSearch includes taxon-level data from over 1,100 collections of living/viable plants, seeds, pollen, and tissues, located around the world. Data is provided and managed by staff at individual organisations. BGCI welcomes garden staff to register as an Editor to review and update their collection’s PlantSearch information on an annual basis.

Use PlantSearch to

Locate and connect with taxa and collections of interest.
Identify global and regional trends in botanic garden ex situ conservation capacity.
Get your organisation on its way to achieving BGCI Accreditation.
Identify botanic garden progress toward implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework, the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), and other relevant international policies.

Global Information System on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture

The Global Information System for PGRFA integrates and augments existing systems to create the global entry point to information and knowledge for strengthening the capacity for PGRFA conservation, management and utilization.

IUCN Guidelines on the Use of Ex Situ Management for Species Conservation

As habitats and ecosystems become increasingly altered and populations evermore impacted by human activities, a growing number of species will require some form of management of both individuals and populations to ensure their survival. Ex situ management is one possible option that can contribute to the conservation of threatened species. The aim of these guidelines is to provide practical guidance on evaluating the suitability and requirements of an ex situ component for achieving species conservation objectives.

IUCN SSC CPSG ‘One Plan’ approach

The One Plan approach to species conservation is the development of management strategies and conservation actions by all responsible parties for all populations of a species, whether inside or outside their natural range.

Traditionally, species conservation planning has followed two parallel but separate tracks. Field biologists, wildlife managers, and conservationists monitor wild populations and develop conservation strategies and actions to conserve threatened species. Meanwhile, the zoo and aquarium community develops long-term goals for sustaining ex situ populations.

CPSG supports an integrated approach to species conservation planning through the joint development of management strategies and conservation actions by all responsible parties. We strive to ensure that a broad range of stakeholders is represented at each workshop. As a result, one comprehensive conservation plan for the species helps bridge the gap between wild and captive population management.

Species 360

Species360 is a non-profit NGO working in wildlife care to improve animal welfare and species conservation. It mobilizes a network of more than 1,300 aquarium, zoo, university, research, and governmental members in 102 countries. A central part of is the Zoological Information Management System (ZIMS), the world’s leading resource for the collection and sharing of data on animals, enabling ex situ institutions to manage their collections effectively and contribute valuable information to global conservation initiatives. ZIMS is the world’s most comprehensive knowledge database on more than 22,000 species. In 2022, Species360 expanded its mission to include flora and extend its operations to horticultural record-keeping, with the addition of Hortis – a specialized software for record-keeping and management of botanical collections.

How to use

Information on Species 360, ZIMS, and Hortis is available at: https://species360.org/about-us/about-species360/

To access Species 360 data it is necessary to register: https://species360.org/become-a-species360-member/

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IUCN Species Survival Commission guidelines on the use of ex situ management for species conservation

The guidelines provide practical support in evaluating the suitability and requirements of an ex-situ population in species conservation. The guidelines are intended to ensure that proposals for ex-situ activities are rigorously designed and reviewed, whatever the taxon or scale of operation. The need for risk assessment and sound decision-making processes in all ex-situ management for conservation is emphasised.