Floral Kingdoms: Fynbos
There are six floral kingdoms in the world: Holarctic (North America,
Europe, Central Asia), Paleotropical (Africa, South Asia, India,
Indonesia), Australian (Australia), Neotropical (South America),
Holantarctic (tip of South America and Antarctica), and Cape Floral (tip
of South Africa). The Cape Floral Kingdom is home to the fynbos region.
Fynbos (pronounced fane-bos )
is an Afrikaans word meaning "fine bush." This region is so named
because of the many low-level scrubby plants and bushes found in this
region. The fynbos is the smallest and richest floral kingdom in the
world. It has more than 9000 plant species, and about 6200 of those are
found no where else on Earth. All of those plants are contained on the
very tip of South Africa, no more than 90,000 square kilometers. In
comparison, Maine is a little over 91,000 square kilometers. The next
richest floral kingdom is the Neotropical region, with only 1/3 the
number of plant species and spread over the entire continent of South
America.
Many plants that are commonly found in and around
homes are hybridized versions of native fynbos plants: geraniums,
daisies, freesias, gladioli, lilies, and irises. So you could say you
have a small piece of the fynbos right in your own home.
Map courtesy of:
http://www.grida.no/
Photo courtesy of:
http://wwf.panda.org/
Sources:
http://www.safarinow.com/cms/
http://www.wwf.org.za/
http://www.capetourism.co.za/
http://didyouknow.org/lists/
http://wwf.panda.org/
http://www.conservation.org/
Floral Kingdoms: Fynbos
There are six floral kingdoms in the world: Holarctic (North America, Europe, Central Asia), Paleotropical (Africa, South Asia, India, Indonesia), Australian (Australia), Neotropical (South America), Holantarctic (tip of South America and Antarctica), and Cape Floral (tip of South Africa). The Cape Floral Kingdom is home to the fynbos region.
Fynbos (pronounced fane-bos ) is an Afrikaans word meaning "fine bush." This region is so named because of the many low-level scrubby plants and bushes found in this region. The fynbos is the smallest and richest floral kingdom in the world. It has more than 9000 plant species, and about 6200 of those are found no where else on Earth. All of those plants are contained on the very tip of South Africa, no more than 90,000 square kilometers. In comparison, Maine is a little over 91,000 square kilometers. The next richest floral kingdom is the Neotropical region, with only 1/3 the number of plant species and spread over the entire continent of South America.
Many plants that are commonly found in and around homes are hybridized versions of native fynbos plants: geraniums, daisies, freesias, gladioli, lilies, and irises. So you could say you have a small piece of the fynbos right in your own home.
Map courtesy of:
http://www.grida.no/
Photo courtesy of:
http://wwf.panda.org/
Sources:
http://www.safarinow.com/cms/
http://www.wwf.org.za/
http://www.capetourism.co.za/
http://didyouknow.org/lists/
http://wwf.panda.org/
http://www.conservation.org/
There are six floral kingdoms in the world: Holarctic (North America, Europe, Central Asia), Paleotropical (Africa, South Asia, India, Indonesia), Australian (Australia), Neotropical (South America), Holantarctic (tip of South America and Antarctica), and Cape Floral (tip of South Africa). The Cape Floral Kingdom is home to the fynbos region.
Fynbos (pronounced fane-bos ) is an Afrikaans word meaning "fine bush." This region is so named because of the many low-level scrubby plants and bushes found in this region. The fynbos is the smallest and richest floral kingdom in the world. It has more than 9000 plant species, and about 6200 of those are found no where else on Earth. All of those plants are contained on the very tip of South Africa, no more than 90,000 square kilometers. In comparison, Maine is a little over 91,000 square kilometers. The next richest floral kingdom is the Neotropical region, with only 1/3 the number of plant species and spread over the entire continent of South America.
Many plants that are commonly found in and around homes are hybridized versions of native fynbos plants: geraniums, daisies, freesias, gladioli, lilies, and irises. So you could say you have a small piece of the fynbos right in your own home.
Map courtesy of:
http://www.grida.no/
Photo courtesy of:
http://wwf.panda.org/
Sources:
http://www.safarinow.com/cms/
http://www.wwf.org.za/
http://www.capetourism.co.za/
http://didyouknow.org/lists/
http://wwf.panda.org/
http://www.conservation.org/
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