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Collaborative Fieldwork and Vegetation Studies in Ethiopia

Collaboration and collecting in Ethiopia: our driver for the last six years, Ermias Getachew, displaying the endemic Barleria grandis Nees (Acanthaceae) that he has just collected.

This project involves plant collecting and vegetation studies in poorly explored areas of Ethiopia as identified in collaboration with senior partners in Ethiopia. In addition the collection of plant based artefacts takes place.

Collections

Since 1995 staff in the herbarium at Kew have been involved with collecting and documentation of plants from many parts of Ethiopia focusing on those areas that are botanically poorly known and/or rarely collected. Collections are preserved in the herbaria of Addis Ababa (ETH), Copenhagen (C) and Kew (K), with duplicates distributed according to the material involved. These new collections involve many taxa that were under-represented in the Kew Herbarium before.

The collected material has been extensively used by those preparing the Flora of Ethiopia and Eritrea providing not only new species but adding to the known range of many plants and helping to identify areas of high endemism.

Whilst in the field the opportunity has also arisen to collect plant based artefacts and other materials such as spices for the economic botany collections based at Kew. These collections are important not only to educate visitors to Kew but also to demonstrate the importance to local people of conserving the natural habitats (forests, wetlands etc.) in which the plants grow.

Capacity building.

 The project involves training junior botanists and technicians from the University of Addis Abeba in plant collecting techniques, family/genus identification in the field and preliminary vegetation assessments for conservation purposes as stated above. The training continues whilst sorting and distributing the specimens in Addis. The material is again used at Kew to train staff in family/genus/species recognition.

Overall, the project has:

·        Enhanced the number and quality of collections from the area in the three participating institutions;

·        Increased knowledge of plant diversity in the areas studied resulting in better awareness of possible areas suitable for further conservation work.;

·        Increased knowledge of the status of the native vegetation in the areas studied including data which will improve knowledge of where to concentrate resources for further work in these areas;

·        Increased knowledge of plant collecting techniques, plant identification and conservation monitoring for participating staff members;

·        Resulted in valuable plant material being made available for researchers working on Flora of Ethiopia & Eritrea and monographic work;

·        Resulted in opportunities for Ethiopian counterparts to participate in collecting trips.

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