Conservation of Endangered Medicinal Plants: Challenges and Options

Abstract

India has about 8000 species of known medicinal plants. Using the current global rates ofspecies extinction around 10 to 12% of the plants i.e., around 800-1000 species are likely to be threatened. For developing conservation strategies it is essential to study their extent ofoccurrence (geographic range, endemism), assess their degree of threat based on International Union for the Conservation ofNature(WCN)categories viz. -vulnerable, endangered, critically endangered etc., harvesting practices, habitat specificity and growth forms (Mali and Ved, ]999). More of shrubs and less of herbs, which is expected from a random distribution among natural flora,