The colonial legacy in African plant taxonomy

Abstract

The conservation of biodiversity is inescapably linked to taxonomy and systematics, the branches of science dealing with the identification, naming and classification of organisms. If there is no reliable and correct name (and therefore no associated description) for a given organism, that organism cannot be identified. Furthermore, it cannot be meaningfully recorded in a biodiversity inventory or assessment, nor can it be protected. And it is estimated that there might be several million living organisms that have yet to be named and described. If the name by which an organism is referred to is wrong, being, for example, a name that corresponds to another organism, the validity of all subsequent studies on it, and in which it is included, must be questioned. Also, without access to the correct names of organisms, it is not possible to conduct any meaningful comparative studies or analyses.