More than half of the world’s palm trees in danger
More than a thousand species of palm tree are at risk of extinction, according to a study.
Scientists used artificial intelligence to assess risks to the entire palm family, from tall trees to climbing plants.
The data gives a much better idea of how many, and which, palm species are under threat.
Palms are a huge plant family that provides millions of people with food, drink and shelter.
“We need to do all we can to protect biodiversity and that encompasses more than a thousand palm species that we now know may be threatened,” said study leader, Sidonie Bellot of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London.
She said action was needed to conserve plants on the ground and to collect more data on them, which cannot be done without the people who live in the regions where palms grow and who use the palms daily.
Palm trees have a host of uses, including as staple crops such as coconut, palm oil, or dates, or in the making of furniture, rubber, oil and ropes.
Scientists are concerned about extinction risks to lesser-known wild relatives of popular ornamental or commercially grown palms.
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