Article

The Mediterranean region houses ssome 25-30000 species of vascular plants and the herbarium collections that have been made of this flora are widely scattered not only in institutions within the region but important collections may be found in herbaria in non-Mediterranean Europe and other parts of the world, reflecting the range of botanists who have been involved in the study of the flora of this area. These herbaria range trom major world class institutions with severa I million specimens to small barely adeguate collections of the local flora. Most floristic work is undertaken today on a national basis and it is a mater of concern that National herbaria in several countries of the region are small and poorly supported. On the other hand, much of the floristic exploration and taxonomic studies on Mediterranean plants has been carri ed out by botanists foreign to the region, both professional and amateur. AIso, a number of major Floras has been written by botanists from outside the country concerned and the collections on which they are based are also largely housed outside the Mediterranean region. Conseguently much ofthe type materia I is to be found in other countries. The significance and implications of this historical inheritance will be considered and suggestions made for remedial action.